Look for me by Moonlight
by Dani Rose Ventra
Summary: “If you think I’m such a pervert, I should act like a pervert.” He responded wittingly and before she could protest that he already was acting like one, his arm snaked around her waist and pulled her close to tilt her head in a tingling chaste kiss...IXR
1. His First Appearance

Look for me by moonlight Look for me by moonlight

Chapter one: His First Appearance

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She couldn't sleep tonight, like the many nights before.

She glanced at her black alarm clock that stared right back at her in bright red numbers. Turning from it she climbed out of her bed and walked to her wide, open window. The night was still young, but far too late for her tired body. She was going to pay for it the next day when she had to wake up for school but really couldn't care about that sort of matter.

These past few months she been living in London were taking a toll on her. She couldn't sleep when every five minuets or so, she would wake up to a car or a bus passing through, or the constant partying right next to the flat she lived in with her brother. She felt like a zombie, almost killing herself more than once when crossing the street when traffic was at its worst. She was lucky to be able to keep all of her limbs. It didn't help when the days seemed longer than usual and the fact that there was nothing in London that captured her attention.

Twin, transparent white curtains blew in the warm summer air, making the girl shiver. Walking to the window of her balcony she pulled herself onto the edge, gripping the edge and letting her legs dangle, watching the pitch-black night light up from the lights of the downtown London city lights, then to the nonexistent stars above her head.

She hated living in the city. It was always crowded, and the annoying neon lights and streetwalkers passing by the neighborhood despite the fact that it was a very well known and tidy place to live. Only the upcoming big time men and women lived here on their paths to riches. The teenagers here were snobby and rude, and so very boring. She disliked her brother for taking her away from the quiet peacefulness of the English countryside to the infamous London.

Just two feet away from her left she could spot her neighbor roam in his flat in darkness and the fact that she knew this bothered her more than she thought. There was absolutely no privacy, everywhere you turned, there were people talking loudly into their cell phones and buses and cars and just everything in general.

When living in the small town of Worcester, she would never have to have the embarrassment of looking out of her flat balcony and see her neighbors staring right back at her. No, definitely not. She had the pleasure of being able to stare dreamingly out of her tiny bedroom window to long rows of green, green grass and the bright colored poppies and daisies that led to the river.

She missed the countryside and its suppleness and natural beauty that would make anyone want to live there forever. No amount of top notched pubs or shopping markets could take her love of the country away from her.

Her eyes drowsily began to droop, but her body refused the sleep it needed from the exhausting day of shopping that her brother demanded of her, mostly because of the lack of clothes she had.

He called her a tomboy, which didn't bother her at all and mentioned for the millionth time how unfitting the heiress to the Kuchiki Business was proving to be very unladylike, threatening to take away her trip to her hometown and hang out with her childhood friend Renji. Unwilling to let the only thing keeping her sane, she grudgidly accepted the credit card he passed to her and hopped into the business car but not before muttering under her breath that he was being a stinky prat. He only grinned short of a smile, and kissed her on the cheek, demanding that she came back with bags of dresses, petticoats, and skirts and not the tattered shorts and tank tops she usually wore.

Glaring at the forgotten bags on the floor that sat idly in the corner, she returned her gaze to the limitless sky, not caring at all about the fact that her window was wide open and she sat in only her midnight blue nightie. She could only imagine what her brother would say to her obvious display and would probably say about how the modern woman would not behave like such a streetwalker . Then to prove his point, he would throw sweaters or even a trash bag if he must to preserve her innocence. A small smile graced her lips at that thought.

Letting her hand stray through her tangled hair, she sighed in delight when her heated face met the cool wind. When her eyes fluttered open against her dark full lashes, she was surprised to find herself staring straight into the most spectacular pair of hazel brown eyes twinkling with mischief.

"Boo."

And like a bashful teenager she was, she screamed like bloody murder.


	2. Peeping Tom

**Chapter two: ****Peeping Tom**

His hand instantly clamped onto her mouth frightened that if he let go, she would continue screaming like a banshee and wake up the entire neighborhood. He honestly didn't know what he was doing here, scaring this girl who he unwelcomingly realized was quite the she-demon, decided to bite him in which he yelped and brought his injured finger to his chest.

"Oi, what was that for!"? He asked surprised even now that she bit him. It was ironic actually. But what he had to question now was why he was right here, next to her window staring into her stunningly violet eyes. What a bird she was.

She stared suspiciously at him, the shadows hiding his face and her hands clutched her chest protectively to only poke at the really tall boys chest that scared the tomboy out of her. She was mad, so mad that she thought she should tell him this. "You… you pervert! You were the one that scared me and had the audacity to try and shut me up when I have the right to call the cops right now and report a break in."

He was shocked at her valiant nature that burst through her eyes, her body tense proving to him that the screeching little kitty was long gone and now stood a ferocious lion ready to pounce and rip him to shreds. But for some odd reason he felt an unfamiliar curve of a grin grace his face that he hadn't felt for a long time. She only seemed to encourage it when she began to express her anger by throwing her hands in a fit and stomp her feet like a disappointed child.

When she caught him staring at her again, she blushed a pretty pink but didn't turn her face from him but asked him instead why he was here and what he wanted with her.

This only made him laugh and Rukia wondered why she felt like laughing along with him. The happiness within him becoming contagious. Then she wondered why she was talking to the odd boy who scared her by her window.

The boy stepped into the light of the moonlight and she had to stifle the gasp that was close to escaping her mouth when she saw his face.

He was bloody **gorgeous**.

That particular thought made all the blood in her face become present in a matter of a second. He was far too handsome to be a boy. Messy ginger hair ruffled under the cool wind to accentuate his golden skin that drew much too much attention to his dangerously sharp jaw.

Gorgeous would have been an understatement. He wasn't _only_ gorgeous, but **drop dead** gorgeous!

Laughing hazel eyes twinkled at her and she couldn't help but think that those warm colored eyes made him even more unbearably, more hot. She stared into his face; trying to find an answer as to why he was here- talking to her as if they were close friends… really, really close friends.

The smirk reappeared again and those twin hazel eyes darkened to a chocolate brown, staring down at her cockily.

"I'm a bit of a looker, aren't I?" He stated and was pleased to see that she turned from him with an undignified humph, her pretty violet eyes darkening.

"Cocky arse" She retorted back at him hauntingly, but he couldn't help but laugh at her again. She was too easy to tease!

From his sudden laughter, she turned to watch him intently, narrowed eyes eased from her face and a curious look took its place. The sound was so unusual and unique that it seemed too cute for her own good and she glared at him with all her might. Somehow, she just didn't think cute should ever describe him. Cute was for puppy dogs, flowers, babies and young couples, not for tall dark and handsome boys who turn up in her room to talk to her in the middle of the night.

The boy noticed the glare and stopped, but the light in his eyes never left.

"I might be a cocky bastard, he state with a chuckle, but at least I don't have a wicked temper." He told her teasingly, but to ensure that she couldn't respond to that, he quickly asked her a question.

"Isn't it a bit late for you to be up? What were you doing –you know before I came along and brightened your day?"

"Nothing." She replied scathingly but this didn't seem to give up.

"Keh, it didn't seem a lot like nothing," he enquired. A brow raised in question and curiosity.

"Well it _was_ nothing, and also _none_ of your business so. Shut. Up." Her purple eyes shifted from its gaze to the sky above them. The boy, after sensing that she would not talk more, looked up at the sky too.

For a few moments, it was quiet and peaceful, no trace of any cars passing through or the blast of the telly next door. Just naked silence, which didn't bother her at all. It was what she liked most.

Then the boy spoke again. "Were you wishing to meet a handsome knight in armor?" He asked, grinning form cheek to cheek when she flushed a ruby red, probing for her answer and leant against the balcony edge, his hands in his pocket completely at ease.

With a humph she replied sarcastically, "Uh-huh with all the stars you can see now" Hands motioning to the starless sky. The wicked little grin spread on her face and she turned to him, a glint of mischief in her eye and continued. "I wished for a knight, but," she said stopping. " –Instead all I got was a peeping Tom".

At the dignified "hey!" at her she let a smile of her own spread throughout her face, the sound of her laughter surprising even her.

"Ouch. That hurt right here!" He said in mock hurt, clutching his chest as if it really was burning and causing him discomfort.

She only continued to laugh, her hand clutching her stomach and her face turning pink from the lack of oxygen she was producing. He watched her contort in pure happiness and found that the sound was very cute and pretty as she was.

After coming to his flat, tired and falling dead on his feet, he entered his high class flat to stumble to the couch on his balcony. For a while he just lay there, staring up at the sky and thinking about nothing in particular when she stepped out into her balcony. He stayed as quiet as possible and watched only a feet away as she walked up to the edge of the balcony and sit on the edge, letting her pale legs dangle on the side. From his view of her, he could see that she was dreamingly staring out to the endless sky and looking as if she had truly found her peace with the world, and he felt drawn to her, watching in curious fascination the way her face looked so gentle and serene from the way her messy ponytail left wisps of black hair to cover her cheeks and the nape of neck to her glowing pale skin.

"Your doing it again Pervert." The girl scowled at him.

"Doing what?" He asked confused.

She turned to him, the bangs in her eyes and smiled as if she thought he was trying to cover up whatever he did, then poked him in his stomach secretly enjoying how the muscles flexed under her fingers.

"Being a pervert you baka."

He grinned at this and the girl questioned what was so funny. Obviously something she wouldn't.

"How am I a pervert?" He asked, playfully.

The girl gave a very unladylike snort and turned from him again and instead chose to stare at something else beside him. "Because you were staring at me in your pervert thoughts, like you just did right now!" She tried to put as much ice into her voice as much as possible, but he didn't find it a bit nerving and turned her around so that she faced him again. He moved in closer to her, so that her back was to nothing and that the only way to not fall to her tragic death was to lean closer to him which she unconsciously did.

His hand came up in a slow motion as if scared she might bite again and attentively ran a finger across her skin. The motions making her shiver in nervous anticipation. He leaned in close, and goose bumps spread down her arms when he looked to her lips and then to her eyes in deliberation. His voice became huskier than usual and smooth and rich like honey.

"Does it bother you?" he asked watching, as her eyes seemed to glaze over dreamingly.

"Your Beautiful."

He didn't know what caused him to add this, but the way her eyes softened, made him want to tell her how beautiful she looked right at that moment.

When the hazy cloud left her eyes, she tried backing away from him to only grip his biceps when she felt her butt tip to the end.

Pushing him hardly, she muttered to him darkly to 'shut up' and gracefully walked into her room, the wind blowing her blue nightie in a gentle caress, and stepped into the warm covers of her bedding. Giving a very loud and audible sigh of satisfaction; she snuggled into her blankets, completely ignoring the boy who stood outside on her balcony.

"Hey, what are you doing?" The orange topped boy asked, surprised that she would trust him enough to leave herself wide open and vulnerable. Did she not realize how dangerous he was at that moment?

"Trying to sleep, I assumed it was obvious" She responded with a yawn.

He stared at the small lump that was the girl under the gray blanket, wondering again why he was here, but couldn't find the urge to move away. The tiny strings of destiny already beginning to spin.

"Well don't. We're still in a conversation you know", he clarified to her gruffly, reaching up to run his hand through his bright hair.

The dark hair girl sat up and turned to him with the hardest glare he'd ever seen. He grinned. "Well?" He drawled.

The girl didn't say anything for a while, ignoring him once again to stare above his head and out of the window to the white moon. When he was distracted, she grabbed her pillow and chucked it at him, smiling deviously when it hit him face first.

"Hey!" He shouted, happy she was not ignoring him like anymore, but surprised that she was capable of playing such a sneaky trick.

Picking up the white spotless pillow, he threw it right back at her, missing her head by a good two feet. He scowled and she laughed. "Terrible aiming, no?" The scowl on his face grew and boy turned a bright red.

"Yeah, well your not very polite. Throwing a pillow at a guest of yours."

"Your not my guest" She replied smartly. "How am I the rude one, you…you pervert!" She pointed at him accusingly.

"But you bit me" He teased, not at all bugged that she did bite him for the matter. "And, he added you have terrible manners. First you bite me, then you throw a pillow at me and you keep calling me a pervert" He scowled at the end, but the lightness in his eyes didn't seem to match what he was saying to her.

"But you are a pervert!" She replied again getting up to get into his face and prove it to him.

He raised an orange brow to her, but smiled when her wrathful eyes stared at him.

"If you think I'm such a pervert, I should act like a pervert." He responded wittingly and before she could protest that he already was acting like one, his arm snaked around her waist and pulled her close to tilt her head in a tingling chaste kiss to her virgin lips. All thoughts were blown away and for once, she was left speechless.


	3. Fields of Sunflowers

**Chapter three: ****Fields of Sunflowers**

Shocked, vibrant violets opened in surprise and pushed the pretentiously mysterious boy from before she stumbled backwards towards her bed. Her tiny fingers touched her sensitive lips, as if she couldn't believe he had just kissed her like…that, staring at him all the while. His eyes turned a darkening warm brown gazing at her and breathing hard, a silly sort of a grin on his lips. He had the look of a man who just found his prize. Fate sure had a way of planning the unexpected.

Finally able to speak, she couldn't help but feel oddly light heartened and shaky, her thoughts running back to his lips that formed a perfect curve. "You, _you_… you KISSED **me**!"

The boy heard this and almost smiled again at her innocence but decided against it, because he knew it would piss her off even more, and the embarrassment would make him want to laugh even more.

He could still feel her feather light lips cautiously respond to his lips like a silken flower being traced along his lips that sent a mad shock of lust stream through his blood.

Bright purple eyes stared at him expectedly. She was the purest image of adulterated thoughts. So clean and untouched that this thought made him have this need for her more. He had never met a girl who was so…_interesting_, except for **her**. She was a delectable creature. _Beautiful. _She was god sent and he cursed himself, already feeling those desires build up again from just the image of her bright pink lips pucker out. _Christ! _He couldn't handle this, he had to fight it being this close to her and yet so far.

"Sorry." He grumbled, reaching up to scratch his head in a nervous habit. He looked down at her and grinned sheepishly. "That wasn't very gentleman like of me, I apologies."

She only nodded, not able to speak, so lost at words and confused about the weird feeling that started to rise in her stomach. He stepped away from the window and pulled his black hoodie so that it covered his bright hair. Nodding to her again, he gave a soft smile and she smiled back, not even trying to fight the reason not to.

"Goodnight". Then he turned around and jumped off the balcony towards his flat, like a street ghost.

"Goodnight" She whispered, regretting not being able to say more.

Drifting back to her luxurious covers, she snuggled into her bed and glanced back at the open window willing herself to stop expecting the boy to pop out of nowhere like before. That night she fell into a lulling sleep, finding that she _was_ able to sleep, **much** better than she had in weeks.

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When she felt the sun kissing her pale face, she knew even before she opened her eyes that she was dreaming. Sun in London was very rare and not likely at this time of season.

_She was in Worcester, in the fields behind Renji's house, sitting down and staring out at the brownish green water that kept flowing down. She had a feeling that she was waiting for someone and at that exact moment as if he had heard her thought_

_she looked up and found her eyes locked into the darkest depths of brown. _

"_Christian"_

_Was that his name? How could she have known, when she hardly knew him in the beginning. Why was he in her dream?_

_He smiled and held his hand out for her, but she didn't reach for it. Couldn't touch it. His long, tan fingers stretched towards her asking her to take it and she had a feeling that this was not the sort of romantic thing Aladdin had done to Jasmine in the Disney movie, but why did this piercing fear hit her so? If this was just a dream, why the precaution?_

_She looked away from his face and glanced behind him to see Renji, his face red and his hands clenched to his sides. His lips strained in a furious yell that she couldn't hear at all._

_He was angry with her, but she didn't know why._

When she looked back to the boy, he no longer held out his hand but a bouquet of sunflowers, the orange fire of the sun behind him. Almost like a warning, and then she realized something. Renji wasn't yelling at her…he was screaming for her to do something…w hat was it..r..un? The sun was becoming unbearably bright and she shielded the light from her eyes and what she saw did nothing to prepare her for the crimson eyes staring at her in ravenous hunger and that had gripped her wrist in a stronghold that had her paralyzed to the ground.

"_No..o" She whispered, tears falling down her face like acid rain. She could feel the pain and welcomed for it to end._

_He smirked at her reaction and only pulled her closer and licked them away roughly, an unwanted shiver shaking her entire body._

"_Yes." He said. _

_And then she screamed._


	4. Ichigo

**Chapter four: ****Ichigo**

A week passed by without a single appearance and Rukia really considering the thought that she was going mad. The boy had been on her mind and the terrifying nightmare did not repeat again. She was glad for this, and soon found no reason why the dream could have been real. After all, she did not know his name and she was not in Worcester, so the event that led her to wake up again in the middle of the night had nothing to do with the fear that wrapped its slimy finger over her heart. The dream wasn't real.

But other things could not be forgotten even if she wanted them to be. Every time she closed her eyes, she could feel his experienced lips softly touch hers that made her knees weak. Her first kiss. And what was worst was whenever she thought of this kiss, her cheeks would become terribly warm and her heart would have a heart attack just like that.

Erasing furiously at her cute little bunny drawing, she stabbed her pencil rather forcibly into a boy bunny that looked remarkably like the mysterious boy.

Two twin black duffel bags sat pitifully near her bedroom door. She had gotten overly excited for the trip and this was the horrible outcome of it. When her brother came in a few minutes ago he quirked an eyebrow and a secret grin spread throughout his face. He teased her about the extent of her excitement and teasingly said he would take away her trip so that she would stay here with him, in which earned him a glare. Of course this had no effect on him and he kissed her on the cheek before leaving the room for her to continue her bunny drawings.

She couldn't wait to go back home and be able to do whatever she wanted. She'd probably hang with Renji most of the time near the lake behind his house and then to the small marketplace in the morning and her home, isolated from the entire town and everyone else which she enjoyed the most. Not only because when she was by herself, she was really able to indulge in the stars and daydream her summer away. A fantastic idea really, but she had to admit that she couldn't help, not even now, stop herself from glancing towards the window every minute of the day.

Just the other day while her French instructor was attempting to teach her about the importance of conjugating verbs perfectly, her head turned -only on instinct to the window balcony. Her instructor scowled rather ugly and questioned if a thousand year old language of elegance and couture was less interesting than a window. She blushed in embarrassment and shame at being caught, but her mentor found this unexceptional and told her brother about her inability to stay focused. Disappointed and ashamed of her failure to do such a simple task, he ground her with no music, reading or phone calls with Renji. Though that had not been a problem at all for her since Renji had not called in a while.

She picked up a postcard that had a picture of a cold winter day, snow and snowflakes falling on the pine trees in the background, looking peaceful and beautiful in the snows embrace. Two warmly dressed friends with their backs to the camera making a small trail of footprints.

Turing it over, she read over the words Renji had sent her after a just awful day at school when a tall and leggy upperclassman decided to use Rukia as her entertainment.

She hated that she was so different from the girls. Blond, green eyed, tall, skinny and beautiful. Instead she was fated forever to have black hair, blue eyes. But not only that, she also looked like a midget that looked like she just got out of elementary school.

She received this postcard a day later that sure enough, made her smile the second she got it.

Princess Rukia!

Your prince shall come and rescue you from the evil queen. My beautiful snow white, whose skin is as white as the snow and lips red as a rose and hair black as ebony, do not fear, you prince shall come! I miss you. Love ya!

_Your prince, Renji_

Renji was the only boy, absolutely the only boy she knew who could make her smile and laugh at the same time, all the time. He was always able to make her happy and smile with anew meaning in her life. He was her true friend. He was the only one who understood her and accepted her before her parents died and even after when she acted cold and indifferent to him, not bothering to waste any time with him and giving up. But that didn't bother him, he loved to waste his unlimited energy on her until it eventually melted her cold exterior and bring forth a laughter that would bring her back to society.

Still smiling at the postcard she turned around in her chair and gasped! The boy with those memorizing eyes and bright ginger hair was here, staring at her amusingly by her window.

"Hello". He said to her lightly, conversationally, smiling when her jaw dropped in shock and disbelief that he was here. The gates of memory opened and just as suddenly as she saw him, her cheeks began to heat up and she diverted her eyes away from him. She closed her mouth and sneaked a glance at him, only to find him laughing at her and she turned away from him with a snort and returned her attention to her drawings.

He was already much more handsome than the last time she had seen him. Her memory did no justice. Dressed in grays and blacks, he wore a black trench coat, with matching black slacks and a gray wool sweater and a dark gray plaid scarf. The contrast between his clothes and his hair made an almost artificial illuminate to his form, making him seem unreal when the London wind blew though his tousled hair. His tan skin, looked warm and remarkably masculine with the curve of his jaw. She was still surprised by his beauty, wondering how he could be so handsome without trying.

"Why are **you** here again?" she asked snidely. She didn't know why she felt so mad at the moment. All she could think about was the insane thought that he was elsewhere with another girl.

"I think you missed me," the boy said to himself. He walked into the room and peered over her shoulder to look at what she was doing, but Rukia stopped him by furiously flipping it over and draping it over her arm protectively. The boy shrugged it off and walked to her bed and flopped onto it, his hands behind his head in a lazy, laid back position.

Rukia found it odd how he didn't seem to listen to her at all and moved to his own beat, but nether less look so… intimidating. Just the way he moved, his body language practically throwing out to whoever was watching exactly who had the authority and dominance- just like her brother, but he just didn't seem like the kind of business shark her brother was. More like a git, a_ sexy _git_._

Rukia stood up from her vanity mirror and walked to her bed and glared at the boy who was currently snuggling into her pillow like he belonged there.

"Christian". She called to him, wondering if her dreams were just a figment of her imagination.

At her call, one suspicious, darkened brown eye looked at her indifferently. "Christian?" He asked. "My names not Christian". He turned his head away from her so she wasn't able

She asked him again. "Why are you here Christian?"

The boy fully got up and went to sit in her chair, straddling it from the back and staring at her oddly.

"Don't call me that. I told you that my names not Christian." He mumbled grouchy as if the name she called him was rubbish.

"Then what is it? We didn't exactly start off with our names and a handshake". She told him before turning to him and inquiring him about it.

He laughed, rocking the chair he sat in and running his fingers through his hair. The sound so genuine it intrigued her.

Lifting a leg so that he sat in it properly, Rukia thought that he looked so silly in her tiny chair with his big frame. He lifted up the upturned picture that she left sitting on her table and answered her question.

"Ichigo. That's my name". He said staring still at her drawing before looking at her with a sly smile, and flipped the picture to her. "Who's this?" He asked teasingly, although the tone of his voice enquired that he did.

Blushing in embarrassment, she swiftly tried to grab the picture, but failed when he stood up, making her jump up and down to get it. The bright pink blush spread down her neck when he chuckled and held it up so that he could see it but held it up so that she couldn't reach it.

"Who is it?" He questioned again, smiling a wide grin, when her blush deepened.

"Orange hair, brown eyes and black clothes. Sounds _very_ familiar"

Rukia glared at him, lips pouted at him in a childish whine.

"Jerk". She mumbled through gritted teeth and tried again to grab the picture at his hands, but the height difference was too unbalanced.

"That's not very ladylike," he taunted at her, that familiar twinkle back in his eye. What was with this git that made him want to tease her so much.

"I don't care". She responded back, not caring that she sounded even more like a child and with a twinkle of her own mischief, she kicked him in the shin and he immediately dropped it to cradle his shin with a moan.

Clutching the drawing to her chest, she quickly got out a key on the desk and stuffed it into an antique dollhouse and locked it.

"You didn't answer my question still" She accused him. _How was he able to do that?_

"I did. You were just busy kicking me. But to refresh your memory it's Ichigo."

"Not that one" She said, frustrated, but enjoying his company all the while.

"Which one?" He asked genuine forgetfulness kicking in.

"Ohhh, you mean why I'm here," He said as if he just caught on.

"Yes" She said, just a bit too quick. Hell, she was just to eager for this and way too frustrated and mad to care. She waited for his reply but he didn't respond and seemed to just stop talking altogether, absently began to play with her stuff lion animal Kon.

"Are you going to answer me?" She asked again. He ignored her again and then blocked her face off with Kon, making it skip around.

"Stop that" She warned, walking to him and snatching it from him, then placed it back on the shelf. He whined, but got bored and slumped right back into her bed. His feet dangled off the mattress edge despite the fact that it was a full sized mattress. She was stopped from her musings when he peaked open one eyes to the lingering luggage's waiting to go to Worcester.

"Going somewhere?" He asked indifferently.

"Yes." She said, not willing to go into details.

"Where?"

"Somewhere" She said. At her response, he sat up from the bed exactly when she lay down, across the feet of the bed. She lay down horizontally while he vertically.

"Where exactly is this somewhere?" He asked more insistently and she wondered why he decided he cared where she was. She didn't even know where hewas_. Bloody hell! She thought. I'm already becoming clingy!_

She ignored him feeling strange in her stomach but comfortable in her bed, although she found that odd because she thought she would've felt a bit awkward with a boy practically sleeping on her bed while she still on it. If her brother found out, he would go mad!

He poked her this time, but she swatted his hand away as if it was a fly and that earned her a laugh.

"Roxanne"

Rolling over onto her stomach, she stared at him as if he just told her that he like hardcore bunny sex. "Who the hell is Roxanne?" She gritted out, so surprised that she was feeling so much rage towards this boy who hadn't done anything, but instead she ignored it and glared at him when he pointed at her.

"That's an awful name for me." She said, making a sour face at the very idea of that being her name.

He chuckled. "Well, you called me Christian, so I thought, -Hey might as well give you one too".

Looking at him suspiciously, she rolled back onto her back and closed her eyes.

"It's Rukia".

"Ru-kia. Yeah that sounds like you," he said, testing her name on his lips. Whenever he said it, she felt like he was saying a spell, her name making the fire of magic grow larger and larger and tickle at her senses. She shivered in its warmth.

"Ru-kia"

"Ruk-ia"

"Rukia"

"Ru-my-kia"

"Kia-my-ru"

"Rukia, Rukia, Rukia"

"Stop saying my name", she mumbled, trying hard to fight off the incredibly bright blush that spread across her face and disappearing to her chest.

She cursed him darkly and with deadly intent if he continued with the pronunciation of her name. She couldn't stop the loud thumping in her heart and the butterflies fluttering in her stomach.

He laughed loudly, making the entire bed shake from the rumbling in his chest. Without thinking she spoke to him.

"You laugh a lot" She stated and rolled back onto her stomach to see his reaction turn from surprise to that silly grin again.

"I don't usually laugh a lot," He admitted.

"Why?" She asked, but immediately clamped her hand over her mouth. She didn't want to seem so nosy!

"Your so curious today" He teased, but answered her question.

"There aren't many funny things to laugh about, or joke about I suppose." His face screwed in a serious scowl, an expression she was definitely not used to.

Hoping to lighten up the conversation, she let herself become the object of his entertainment. "And you think I'm funny?" She asked him.

It proved to be the right thing to say. "Yeah, your hilarious" And to prove it he began to laugh when she scowled, holding a hand to his stomach in an tempt to keep in his loud, thundering laughter that filled her room.

"Well I'm so happy you find amusement in my torture" She said sarcastically, glancing in the corner of her eye to see his reaction, but he only smiled in thought. They laid there on the bed in comfortable silence, the open window still blowing in some warm summer air. She shivered and tried snuggling into the wall for some warmth. The bed dipped in from some weight and she opened her eyes, surprised to see him move the warm blankets on top of her.

So surprised and strangely happy that that he was concerned about her welfare, she smiled and whispered a thank you.

"Your welcome." He said softly. His voice smooth and sweet as honey. Just perfect.

Warm, and feeling her body slip into an abyss of dreams, she was called out of her slumber. "Rukia".

"Uh-huh?" She whispered, trying hard to fight off the weight of her eyelids from falling down.

"Where are you going?" Then there was a pause as if he was afraid to say something next. "Why aren't you afraid of me?" His voice asked her clearly, so softly that it hurt to hear him saying it with so much despair, but she couldn't tell with her mind so hazy.

"Of course… I'm not afraid of…you" She answered him with a yawn before snuggling into her pillow and smelling fresh winter snow, wift into her nose. "Your not…scary at all. The luggage's are for a trip to town".

"I see". He said sounding relieved.

The bed dipped again and she peered open her to see his looming body near her side of the bed.

"Sleepyhead". He whispered to her teasingly, smiling down at her with those beautiful hazel eyes.

"Ok, just one more question and I'll let you sleep". He promised and chuckled when she groaned.

"Which town?"

"Worcester" Another yawn, before adding "I used to live there".

Silence filled the room and Rukia peeked to see if Ichigo was still there and caught him staring at her with that funny look again. Dark brown eyelashes shielded his deep brown eyes that peered down at her. He bent his head and Rukia closed her eyes feeling a featherlike touch kiss touch her forehead. Surprised she looked up to find him already halfway out onto the balcony.

"Goodnight Rukia".

And like last time he disappeared to his flat. Rolling over, Rukia dug her head into her pillow, smelling that same smell of winter and forest air before sleeping the instant she closed her eyes.


	5. Sweet Sixteen

**Chapter five: ****Sweet Sixteen**

_She was having a nightmare again. She knew it was one because she was in Worcester again, and all her horrible dreams started in Worcester. Just like the last time it didn't start off bad at all._

_She sat in an old willow tree sleeping soundlessly like she did many times when she was younger. The tree had been her favorite because it was the only tree left in town that wasn't man planted and stood isolated around stringy strands of grass. _

_Her pale naked legs dangled from the limb she sat in and she hummed thoughtfully to herself. It was so quiet in her dream that the only sound made was her own voice and when she stopped humming it was deathly quiet. There was a sort of mist, lazy and thick that it surrounded her tree and blundered her blind and like inhaling a drug, she felt her mind go hazy and dizzy._

_That was when everything turned chaotic. Her ears perked up to a sound of crunching grass and she sat up in alarm. The willow tree she sat in was really quite high and had few but enough leaves and branches to block off peeping strangers. She was glad that whatever was out there couldn't see her because when she saw it, fear rose up in her that she couldn't push down. _

_Sweat began to secrete from her hands and she breathed hard, not knowing that if she had done it any harder the stranger would have heard it too. He was a man again, large in build but short in height. He crouched into the clearing, his shirt was tattered and slashes from his chest were bleeding from open wounds. But his state was not what rang alarms in her head. It was his eyes. Pupils' dilated and bloodshot red. His face was pulled in a grimace, mad in rage the way his lips curled in a feral and animalistic growl. His face was the sort of face you would see in a deranged dog, hungry and yearning for something to kill. The face of her killer._

_Her hand clutched at her mouth, scared that her erratic breathing would alarm the killer to her, but in was all in vain for when she moved to clasp her mouth, the hand crunched the leaves underneath her hand. _

_Red furious eyes stared up at her with a smirk and she closed her eyes willing to wake up. But she could feel him, close to her, breathing down her neck._

"_I've got you"._

_And she screamed because in her heart…she knew it was true._

_-_

Rukia shot out of bed, clutching her heart. Sweat dripped down her forehead and onto her cheek. She absently wiped it away with her hand and sagged back into her bed, willing those scarlet eyes from reappearing again in her dream once more.

-

When she woke up the next morning, she kept feeling those bloodthirsty eyes follow her with that sadistic smile on his face as if he was there, watching her fidget from his stare. It was as if she was on alert, turning around to find no one there. It made her anxious.

After trying to a fall asleep for the second time, she dreamt of sunflowers and Ichigo, minus the tears and screaming and red eyes. What had confused her was that whenever she thought of that dream she couldn't figure out why he was there and why he looked so gorgeous in the warm summer sunshine, arms wide open for her to jump into and those twinkling eyes sparkling with love and his delicious mischief. And her name, which never sounded so much better than before.

Sitting down at the dining table, she waited for the butler to serve her light brunch with tea. Thoughts of those bloody eyes popped into her mind and she shifter uneasily in her chair. In her fit of discomfort, she knocked over a table decoration. She swore and set it back up before twiddling with her fingers nervously. _Get a grip Kuchiki, it_ _was just a nightmare._ _No big deal. Kuchiki's are stronger than this, just stop being a little twat about it and think of something else her mind told her, but she could not for Kami's sake stop the feeling of dread filling her, something happened, she knew, she could feel it in her gut feeling and it was telling her to be on alert._ But of course this was bad because every time something made the tiniest noise, it would cause her to flinch.

"Rukia".

Rukia jumped in her chair in shock, causing the plates to clatter. Blushing in embarrassment, she glanced at her brother to see him stare at her confused, and then ignored her to open up the newspaper.

"Good morning." Any indication that he heard her was answered with an 'hmm' and then it was quiet again.

Finally the butler came in with sliced fruit and yogurt with her favorite tea, jasmine.

Grabbing the tea as soon as it touched the table, she let the sweet strong smell loosen up her tense muscles, letting her enjoy the warmth it brought to her pale face. Sighing in delight she set the tiny china down and picked at the fruit on her plate, eating some of it and playing with most.

"Rukia, stop playing with your food" Byakuya reprimand her and she stopped with a scowl on her face when she was forced to stop her fun game. Byakuya set the newspaper down and took a sip of his tea before speaking again to her.

"Go upstairs and dress, we leave in fifteen minutes to Yoruichi's daughter Orihime sixteenth birthday". For a moment he stopped and stared at her long and hard before checking her from head to toe. "Why aren't you wearing any of your new clothes? I think I deliberately said the deal was for you to buy some ladylike clothes and wear it, instead of leaving it in the corner waiting for it to become dust. Now, if I don't see you in those clothes, I will cancel your trip and force you to attend every social party there is this season." But despite the tone of his voice, the smile on his face showed that he was teasing her, but with a force.

Rukia pouted and stomped her feet all the way out of the room, but did not say anything, after all, her actions pretty much spoke in volumes from her fisted hands and stick movements to her blazing violet eyes practically burning a hole into her brothers head which he ignored easily and returned his attention back to the newspaper, sipping his tea loudly.

Ten minutes later, Rukia emerged from the stairs stomping all the way in a dark blue baby doll dress with black Mary Jane's on her slender ankles. Bangles of black and silver clanked and rung with noise whenever she moved. A dark gray pea coat slung on her arm.

"I'm ready."

Setting the teacup down, he pushed the chair out and dabbed his lips with his napkin then called for the servant to bring his coat. When he finished, he ushered her to the door, ordering her to put on her coat on and climbed into the small business car.

Rukia sighed and lent her head against the window and wrote letters with her finger and her breath. When she grew tired of this, she watched the buildings, and markets pass by and then a new line of mansions appeared before her sight. If it weren't for the fact that this was not the first time she had ever been here, she would have appreciated the line of spectacular mansions that sat in all its greatness and splendor on Billionaires row.

She supposed she would have fawned and gushed over the princess like decorations of each manor, seeming to become more extravagant than the last. But all in all Rukia was bored of it. Bored of the entire super over the top mansions and their Olympic pools, and their 6 star chefs and their 300 rooms and all that useless stuff that people envied over. What was the point when she knew half of time, the people that lived there hardly stayed longer than a week, too busy with their changing schedule and top ranking companies to actually appreciate the house? So even if every single house had a quantity of whatever's to a quality of whatever's, Rukia would always see it as useless and materialistic, like the 500 dollar wool coat from Chloe that she got at the market or the 250 dollar Mary Jane's she got at Jimmy Choo's. All of that stuff was just too much and honestly not worth the labor it cost to get it.

"Ridiculous", she murmured to herself, lost in thought.

"Excuse me?" Byakuya asked her looking at her and eyeing her curiously.

"Nothing" she said quickly and averted her eyes back to the window.

"Behave Rukia. I know that you hate these sorts of gatherings but try and have fun. I will not tolerate you running your silly sailor mouth to the other teens."

Silence. And as if her silence was a nod of approval he smiled.

"Just try to have fun, I know your going to have fun Rukia, you'll love it, or learn to love it," He added after she stuck her tongue at him. "Orihime has went all out for her pre coming of age party and was even allowed to invite many of her male friends. Maybe you'll be a bit more social with the knowledge that you won't have to talk to girls. Maybe one of them could be your **new** best friend."

"I hate parties and I hate that you're _forcing _me to go. I _don't _want to become acquaintances with any of those spoiled twats" She growled out and crossed her arms in from of her chest stubbornly.

Byakuya only half laughed, for you could never know what the other half was. "Yes I know"

The remained silent for the remainder of the trip. When the house began to appear behind the thousands of willow trees that hid their house from paparazzi, they were escorted out of the car and up to the steps of Byakuya's business partner and confidant Yoruichi.

It was a really big house, shaped like a cottage, but obviously it could not be called a cottage due to its size. It had to be about more than 20,000 square feet with an ancient British countryside feeling to it that Rukia utterly adored. Actually anything that was antique she loved! She loved the feeling of being able to touch or feel something that belonged to ruling lords and rising dukes. The house was very traditional indeed. Two stories high and covered in the most delicate and intricate way of vines entwining around the house, and windows. Almost the identical house shown in Madeline, except for the fact that Orihime did not have a Spanish ambassador son for a neighbor but a well renown fashion magazine editors son for a neighbor.

After climbing the stone steps to the house Byakuya knocked onto the door and checked his silver Rolex watch for the time. "It's half past 5, we're a bit late but I don't think Yoruichi will mind".

Rukia stood there looking bored as ever and holding onto her coat by its arm. Byakuya gave her a look and she grumpily pulled it to sling onto her arm in a very ladylike fashion that he would be totally proud of. Byakuya handed her a wrapped box of bright red and gold and she looked at him confused and surprised.

"You did not have time to shop for a gift, so I asked one of my assistants who had knowledge of what young girls like and told her to buy and gift wrap it for me."

Rukia sighed again and bit her lip in agitation and a bit of nervousness. She wasn't at all use to the idea of going to a party where their would be boys, lots and lots of spoiled know it all boys. There was a reason she wanted to go to an all girls' school. Over privileged boys and girls in one school were going to be too much to take.

The white door finally opened to a tall dark haired woman with an almost eastern tan look to her that she must have gotten done when she went to the West Indies for company business. From what she read in the London times, she was there to promote a shelter for the single mother protection home that grew very popular. They had all spoken highly of her saying how young and accomplished she was and how generous she was for a woman of only 30 to be fighting for a right she believed in, after all, it was much believable when she knew firsthand what it felt like to be a single mother. This surprised Rukia a lot from the amount of confidence Byakuya put into this woman and a new respect she had for this woman.

"Welcome. I'm so glad your here, come in," She said with a strongly thicken accent.

The first thing you notice when you step into her house is her grand gold encrusted staircase, spiraling from both sides to connect to the middle. Gold vines were painted with much care to the pillars, fit only for a real princess. To the left was the library and the right was the sitting room where the other parents sat and mingled between each other. Their sparkled gowns and faux fur wraps made Rukia feel underdressed.

After the maid took their coats Rukia watched patiently as Yoruichi and Byakuya talked business. She must have been daydreaming because when she looked up, the pair stared at her oddly and she smiled awkwardly.

"Rukia I'm so glad that you could come. Orihime will be happy to see you. I'll show you to the pool house where the rest of teenagers are".

Rukia followed behind her quietly and swore silently. She suddenly became nervous at the thought of having to mingle with the other kids. It wasn't that she wasn't social. The fact that she didn't do anything in common with the other kids was a big factor in gaining friendship and it was sadly a fact that when she tried to talk to someone about a non important matter, they would switch the topic to a recent movie in theaters or the just out of the designers studio line of clothes for the season. She had absolutely no knowledge about that subject, so to not have to encounter that conversation again she just skipped the entire thing and kept to herself.

The only person she spoke to at all was Orihime, but that was near to impossible considering the fact that everywhere Orihime went, a train of boys followed her like a flock of birds. What was even odder was the fact that beside the fact that they both went to an all girl's school, there had to be one boy there following her. But besides that, she was alone most of the time. What really bugged her was the fact that she was truly beginning to believe that she was socially invalid.

The pool house was not really what you would expect a pool house to look like. It was more like a second house, furnished just as expensively with a few couches, a sitting room with a bar in the corner and in another room connecting to the sitting room, was a play room where arcade games and a plasma screened TV was set. Pool tables were set to the side and food and drinks right beside it. It was the ultimate party room for this particular event.

Yoruichi ushered Rukia in with a smile and called Orihime.

At the sound of her name, Orihime turned to her with a bright smile. She wore a crimson red spaghetti dress that was backless and revealed a whole lot of her-assents than Rukia wanted to see. When she noticed that her mom was not alone she smiled even wider and squealed "Kuchiki-san! I'm so happy that you're here!" Orihime hugged Rukia and Rukia smiled weakly and hugged her back, trying to ignore the fact that she was hugging Orihime's boobs due to the height differences.

"Thanks for inviting me Orihime. I brought your gift" Rukia said and handed Orihime the present.

"Aww, you shouldn't have" She responded with much enthusiasm and hopped off to join them on a table of gifts. When she returned, Orihime pulled her along and brought her to the sitting room, where the other guest were.

When they looked up, they all smiled kindly and greeted her much nicer than she expected. Eyeing them suspiciously, she returned the smile and sat down next to an empty spot next to a tall dark haired boy with light blue eyes locked into a conversation with another boy who had unnaturally dirty blonde hair. Another dark haired boy sat down on the other couch with glasses. From what she remembered, she had heard of this boy, Ishida, who was one of the sons of the stock breakers that she had read about. The boy turned to her and smiled, she smiled back but found it creepy. _Way_ creepy.

"Hello Kuchiki-chan. We've never met before but your brother showed me a picture of you and mentioned if I knew you. I'm Ishida" He said and brought out his hand to grasp.

Rukia shrugged it lightly and smiled politely, but was lucky enough not to have to say anything more because his cell phone rang and with a sheepish smile, excused himself outside.

"Do you know any good games to play, we're utterly bored trying to think of something to play while its still light outside"? One girl asked Rukia after everyone stopped talking. Rukia recognized the girl for being the only girl in London who won a world-renowned championship league for her age level in Kendo. She was also known for her ability to scare off boys that got too friendly with Orihime.

"Umm…I got one, but its sort of lame," Rukia said, a bit unsure if she should even suggest it.

"That's okay, we've already played pretty lame ones already, like hide and go seek" Tatsuki encouraged. The other girls nodded too for her to continue and Orihime sat next to her, pushing the two boys who were talking to the floor.

"Yes tell us Kuchiki-san, anything should be fun!" Rukia smiled at the encouragement and told them.

"Okay, don't laugh but have you guys played truth or dare yet?"

"Kuchiki-san you're a genius!" Orihime squealed and went back to her seat beside Tatsuki and another girl with bright ginger hair like her. The other girls smiled, and suddenly Rukia felt bad for calling them spoiled twats.

"I can't believe we didn't think of that before!" A girl who was quite petite, almost smaller than Rukia herself and sat on one of the boys lap said. "I mean it's got to be one of the most obvious ones to play." Rukia smiled and couldn't help but feel like she was already accepted into their close circle of friends. Everyone shifted into a big circle and an empty cocoa cola bottle sat in the middle.

The black haired boy that was talking earlier came back and sat next to her once more. "Ok, what are the rules to the game, and who wants to be my lucky lady tonight?" He asked no one particular, but to everyone. His voice had this commanding quality to it and booming and very masculine and cocky –if you were interested in that sort of thing. She guessed it was, because very single girl inched closer to him and smiled with feminine confidence, calling out to him sweetly.

This surprised Rukia so much that that she turned fully to him and stared openly and with an odd expression gracing her face. I mean really looked at him.

When he noticed her stare, he grinned back, one of those trademark bad boy smiles that she had a big suspicion he practiced at home with, and thought would immediately make her swoon. But she didn't. She actually did what he didn't expect and laughed at him. Not a giggle, but a full on laugh out loud. Luckily, no one was paying any attention to her and was way too into this boy that any noise would be over powered by their almost unison voice of delight and pleasure.

His grin faltered for just a moment and he seemed a bit disgruntled and turned his attention away from her and back to his birds, eager for his attention.

Rukia continued to stare at him, watching him with curious and fascinated eyes at the boy who was able to make all the girls crazy just by speaking alone. In her opinion, he wasn't really anything special.

His hair was tousled and hanged just below his eyes in that "I just woke up" sort of hair, but she thought it looked _**way **_too perfect to be naturally that good looking. He had these pretty blue eyes covered by those dark full lashes that guys shouldn't be born with and smooth porcelain skin. He was pretty, but a pretty that should never be on a boy. His face she had admitted was pretty cute in a baby face cute sort of manner. He did have a really cute baby face thing going on, but he just wasn't her cup of tea.

After the excitement and superfluous giggling, the room calmed down and the girl on the boys lap spoke again. "I know what we could do! We can play truth or dare with a twist. If anyone doesn't take up the bet, they have to take shots off of someone's body!"

_Body shots?_ Rukia thought. _I haven't even had a shot before and I'm already skipping to body shots! _But obviously everyone had, for they all began to cheer and shout excitedly while the girl hopped off the boys lap and went to get the acquired items and returning with two bottles of liquor, four shot glasses and lemon wedges.

"I hope you don't mind, I don't want to take all the good ones before the party really got started, so I got the Berry Vodka and half a bottle of Hypnotic."

"That's cool". The boy next to her said and grabbed the items from her after she returned to her seat on the boy's lap.

"Okay, Orihime I think you should start it off since you're the birthday girl!" Tatsuki encouraged.

Orihime didn't even need the encouragement because she clapped happily and grabbed the bottle and spun it around. It spun a couple of times till it stopped…to the boy next to her. She sighed in relief, but not known to her something was going to happen and when I mean happen I mean soon.

Rukia was glad she didn't get picked because she didn't want to be under everyone's scrutiny again.

"Truth or dare?" Orihime asked.

"Dare" he said smoothly which got everyone to "OOOOh" and he grinned deviously.

"Knight, Orihime continued I dare you to…. OH!" Then a light of mischief crossed Orihime's face that made Rukia gulp. I dare you to give Kuchiki-chan a lap dance!"

All the girls giggled anticipating his lap dance and clapping for him to go on with it. Rukia blushed and covered her face in embarrassment. The boys hooted and whistled catcalls at him, which made him grin even wider. The boy whose name was Knight, only shrugged and turned to her with a smirk on his face. He got up and stood right in front of her which made Rukia scoot back but this didn't help her at all because when she tried backing away, she hit a table and was forced to stare at the boy who was poisoning her virgin eyes.

Knight began to thrust and move to music unknown to her, but the horror didn't stop there. Then he started to take off his shirt and revealed his naked chest to the entire party, and flexing his washboard stomach and bulging biceps to her. If she had anymore of this, Rukia swore she would have a nosebleed from all the nakedness. Rukia tried shielding her eyes, hoping that with this she wouldn't have to watch as Knight began to grind his ass to her and grin at her as if she was loving it but he quickly took her hands away and forced her to look. Rukia squeaked, and to her own pleasure Knight stopped and sat back down, pulling his shirt back on as if he hadn't just gave her a lap dance slash strip show.

It was amusing to see the girls continue to catcall and even pull out bills to stuff into his pants.

"Ok it's your turn Knight". Orihime cheered.

"Sweet." He said and spun the bottle. It spinned and spinned until it stopped onto… guess who Rukia!

Everyone cheered and shouted for Knight to continue. Rukia groaned in misery, wishing for death to come upon her at that moment.

"I was hoping that I would get you" Knight whispered intimately to her which made Rukia uncomfortable in his emphasis of you and grin of his lips. She laughed nervously, not really saying anything, afraid that she might say something awkward. More in fact then she wanted it to be.

"Truth or dare" He asked turning to her and looking squarely at her in the eye, daring her to say dare.

There were two things that Rukia just could not do. The first was declining her favorite mint chocolate chip ice cream and the second were dares. Maybe it was the fact that she was a teenager and was probably going through her rebellious streak or the fact that it was all just a game to her, but nether less she could never ever, even if it meant going against her integrity, go down against a challenge.

Game. Set.

"Dare".

Knight smiled charmingly. "Good".

"I dare you to kiss me."

Rukia stared surprised and now regretted saying anything at all. _Kiss him?_


	6. Take it up in Shots!

**Chapter six: ****Take it up in Shots**

Game.

At that moment, Rukia threw all caution into the wind. After all, she wasn't with Ichigo. Ichigo didn't say he was with her or if he liked her at all. Not to mention that what he doesn't know, wont hurt him right?

With that thought in mind, she grabbed the front of his silk black shirt and pulled him to her and kissed him with a ferocity that even surprised her. She pretended it was Ichigo she was kissing instead of this narcissist boy and only with the intent of winning this challenge.

The kiss was chaste and short, but when she pulled back, totally unbothered, Knight leaned in and tried to recapture her lips back to find that they were already gone from his. Rukia laughed in her hand and the boys catcalled once more, more for the fact that Knight just got owned then the fact that he didn't have the same power he had over her that he had for the other girls.

Rukia laughed in delight. That was fun! Never before had she ever had this power over boys. For the first time in her life, Rukia felt like a **sex** _kitten_!

Knight glared, his cheeks a rosy red in comparison to his pale cheeks, affected by the kiss much more than he realized.

What did confuse Rukia, was why he looked as if she had taken away his first kiss.

Compared to her kiss with Ichigo, she felt absolutely nothing for him. There were no weak knees, fast beating heart or sweaty hands of any sort. To her it was like kissing her brother, or rather a dummy because she actually liked her brother and well…she wasn't exactly fond of Knight at all.

Rukia gasped when Knight's eyes darkened in an unknown emotion, and then pulled her into a demanding, and ruthless kiss. _His kiss hurt, hurt so much that she began to bleed. Especially when he scraped her lips with his teeth and drowned her with his tongue that was in the motion of trying to make her choke, or even worse throw up. She tried pushing him away, but he was much stronger than she was and from this angle, the rest of the party wasn't able to help her or see her enraged eyes and blunt nails biting into his silk long sleeve._

Rukia flashed her eyes from side to side, frantic to get out of this situation while trying to signal someone to help her, but no one could even comprehend what she was saying. All they could see was two hormonal teenagers swapping saliva.

Then when Rukia was beginning to accept defeat, she felt a warm tingle caress her up and down. Engulfing her in its fierce aura. Startled, she flickered her eyes to the side and there **he** was, standing at the entrance of the room glaring down at her menacingly and with so much fire and uncontrollable hate that she shivered and unconsciously gripped the boys shirt tighter in fear.

Knight, oblivious to her fear pulled her closer and pulled her flush body against his chest. Rukia squeaked and stared at Ichigo helplessly as a glint of pure undiluted raw possession fill into his eye. The hand holding a small gift was crushed in its grip and only then did he finally speak.

"That's enough Knight". His voice spoke softly so that no one but the two of them could hear warning Knight of what could happen if he didn't, and after hearing this, reluctantly broke the kiss that Rukia thanked was finally over. Her oxygen intake was dangerously low, and she really didn't want to die kissing this bugger.

She held her rushing heart, trying to force it calm, the sight of Ichigo was enough to make her gasping hard after Knight _**literally**_ took her breath away.

"I see you caught yet another helpless bird".

Rukia stared in shock.

Of course her shock would only get even bigger when Orihime…

"Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime squealed in happiness, sprinting over to him and jumping into his arms… like any other lover would have done.

Rukia stared shocked once more. But could not even take another look without feeling her heart fall into her stomach, and turned her head away from the sight. Why was she feeling this sort of dread fill into her throat and began to feel it reel its ugly head out of her mouth? She felt like the gravity was knocked right under her foot and she now stood falling into a whole full of her misery. She hated this feeling. She hated it and hated it so much that she no longer felt a coldness seep into her heart but a warmth that was the very jealous green fairy.

She was so infuriated! So angry and enraged in fact that her dull fingernails began to dig unrelentlessly into the skin of her palm. _What the hell was his problem?! This was all his fault! The moron! And why was he here! Of all the places __**HERE**__, hugging Orihime like he, well like he…well he did to her before. But more importantly why was she so jealous! _She had no right to be and before she thought any further of this, a cold arm encircled her waist and pulled her flush against a body clothed in silk. She was about to turn to him and say something very indecent and frigid to Knight that went along the line of 'get your bloody hands off of me you ugly prick' but was stopped by a much more intimidated and hair raising voice.

"It's good to see you Knight, but I'm afraid I don't know who this bird is, does she have a name?" He said then turned to her with those emotionless eyes that made her shiver and question his indifference to her. It almost made her guilty, almost until she remembered _whom_ it was hanging on his right arm.

But before any of two could answer, Orihime with her very high and feminine voice beat them both to it.

"Oh I can tell you! This is Kuchiki Rukia. Her brother is the owner of the Kuchiki stock business," Orihime told him happily, grabbing his arm tightly and squeezing it to her chest like a stuffed animal.

"Likewise Ichigo, but I'm surprised you were able to come to your girlfriends birthday." Knight said, all pretenses of warmth and welcome gone, replaced by cold emotionless words. But the moment he said that, Rukia stared unbelievingly at Knight, then at Ichigo. The way he had said it… it was as if he had known it would break her heart.

But she had to admit, that last bit worked as plan, it hurt so much more then her imagination gave her credit. What else did she expect, after all, all the obvious signs were there, she guessed she was just too oblivious to it all. Feeling a bit crummy, she leaned against the only warmth she felt and he instantly pulled her closer to his side. Almost like he was putting her on display, but she didn't care. Ichigo turned those blazing brown eyes onto her, she ignored them.

"Are you an item now?" Ichigo asked a flicker of emotion passing through his eyes just fast enough for Rukia to catch.

All Rukia wanted to say was NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! But instead she stared directly into his eyes and answered with pale-hearted lies.

"Yes."

Even without looking at Knight, she knew he was smirking in victory. Ichigo and Knight were obviously not mates.

Rukia turned around surprised when the girls cried in sad whines, glaring at her all the while. But Rukia just turned around and tried to ignore the fifteen pairs of eyes glaring into her back.

_I take back what I said about feeling bad for what I said about them, she told herself. They deserved it…bloody birds._

"I see" He gritted through his teeth and then turned to Orihime and smiled warmly at her. Something crushed inside of Rukia at that moment, she never felt so raw. What a complete ninny she was! She truly believed that he liked her and the fact that she thought so, made her feel so much like a fool. But if he didn't like, it didn't mean she had to like him. Right?

If that was how he wanted it that was perfectly fine with her. After all there were so many more boys to go for… With that happy thought in mind, she scooted closer to Knight and pecked him on the cheek. Knight, surprised but excited at her affection grinned and pecked her back on the cheek. _Nothing._ There was absolutely nothing…but a warm brotherly feeling. Why was it that she couldn't feel anything when he kissed her?

"I'm bored with this game!" The girl on the boys lap whined. "Let's just drink and start this party!"

Everyone cheered and agreed in unison and in no time, music blared throughout the room, dim lights flickered, as people scattered around swaying to the hypnotic beat.

Rukia didn't even move, all she could do was watch and stare as a voluptuous Orihime climbed onto Ichigo's lap and wrappped her arms around his neck. She watched the way Ichigo's eyes connected with her, wanting her to watch as he pulled Orihime's chin down and pressed a lustful kiss onto Orihime's waiting lips. His hands gripping her rear end and the other entangled into her dark ginger hair.

She turned away, not able to take anymore and obediently followed Knight, allowing him take her away.

In the next few hours, Rukia was gone. It had all started with one drink, then after the first couple of drinks, everything began to get hazy.

She felt as if everything was put on blast and suddenly it was like you were able to hear everything in the room. If she moved really fast, it felt as if everything was slowing down and what she didn't know was that when everyone was drunk, they were the friendliest people you could ever know! Everyone was much nicer and friendlier and smiling at her all the while. Drinking was the funniest! Shoot she didn't even know if funniest was even a word!

Everything that happened next was a blur to her. She could vaguely remember little clips of memoirs of what happened but the only thing she could seem to remember were other pink-faced boys and girls smiling at her and telling her the funniest jokes.

She didn't remember holding onto her brother as she tried to walk to the car, spewing sailor words at everyone and eventually throwing up on her brothers lap. She did remember however being put to bed and feeling like crap, but before she succumbed to sleep that she desired, she saw the red clock letter of 12:24 blaring on her alarm clock. Sleep was heaven.

-

The window to her balcony slammed open from the harsh wind and woke a disheveled Rukia up. Rubbing her eyes, she looked out at the window and moaned at the darkness.

Rukia glanced at her alarm clock and groaned in her pillow. It was only 1: 56 and that meant she barely had two hours rest, not enough to be just an ounce socialable.

She stepped out of her bed and walked rather awkwardly, for her legs refused to walk straight to the window and shut it closed. Yawning, she rubbed her eyes again and walked back to her bed, which was until she tripped over Kon and fell into the arms… _of her torturer._

"Rough night?" He asked, gripping her hard and staring at her with cold piercing black onyx eyes.


	7. Some Serious Discussions

**Chapter seven: ****Some Serious Discussions**

For the first time, Rukia could not stand those horribly horrid eyes staring back at her and growled at him viciously. The sound made his eye flicker a surprised soft gold before it returned to its unwavering glare.

"Go away!" She said while prying his hands off of her arm and he immediately let go without any restraint. She wavered back to her bed and slumped onto the tangled covers. When the bed dipped, she jerked her head to him and frowned.

"Are you deaf? I told you to get out of here, so do both of us a favor and leave"! She griped her temples, when the loud beating of her heart echoed into her mind to create a throbbing feeling that made her moan in agony.

"GOD can this day get _any_ worse"! She said to herself and turned completely away from him so that her back was to him. She didn't know what he was doing here in the first place, this was his fault! If he hadn't lead her on and make her feel like an utter fool, she wouldn't have gotten herself into so much trouble drowning herself in drinks to force the ugly feeling of rejection to go away. Although she had to admit now how absolutely idiotic that idea was.

Ichigo didn't say anything…at all. So she sat there fuming in her anger and letting it radiate off of her body like a flaming aura. Ichigo didn't speak though, all he did was stare. Stare at her with his beautiful hazel eyes. Although she couldn't see him, she knew he was staring at her. Could feel it all over her body, burning and leaving marks onto her body like scorch marks. She couldn't see why he was here –still. If he didn't like her, which he wanted to so want to prove to her at the party, why would he still be here in her presence when she knew he hated her guts more then ever, but why would he be mad at her? It wasn't as if they were an item as he practically spit it at her. But she could care less what he thought of her. As long as he got out of her life this moment. After all, an eye for an eye –right?

"What are you still doing here! Go shag your girlfriend!" The pain in her chest began to resurface its ugly head and her temples were really killing her at the moment to even care. So what if she was being snotty and selfish, she deserved to be.

"To tell you the truth…I don't know why I'm here." He told her slowly as if to not anger her even more. His tone of voice was not the same as it had been before at the party. The way he seemed to make her feel like he was the gum stuck on his shoe that he wanted to get rid of.

Her hand jingled the bangles still on her wrist as she gripped the bed sheets from underneath her. She didn't want him here. Especially now when she felt like crap and probably looked like it too. Not when she wanted to sleep the rest of her misery away and forget all of the rubbish things she said and done like it never happened.

"Then go, don't pity me -don't you ever pity me cause I don't need your bloody pity, not ever." She told him, softly but firmly. It was a silent bidding for him to leave. Anything, to let her sleep this night away, even though she knew she wouldn't be able to, and would instead lay on her bed and stare at her ceiling and wonder how she could mess an entire meeting by allowing herself one simple kiss.

"No"

Shocked, she turned to him and froze in her spot when she saw his eyes. The warm brown color of his gaze froze any thoughts she wanted to say.

All traces of anger, regret or disappointment were all gone.

For a moment, they just looked at each other; all matters of the world gone and in this alternate universe there were only the two of them. He leaned down and her heart beat faster, and she closed her eyes waiting for the soft press of his lips to hers but it never came. Her eyes opened confused to see him a few feet away from her, pacing from one spot to another.

The hand that was stuffed in his pocket was now in his hair, threatening to pull out in his aggravation. Rukia hoped he wouldn't because she liked his hair way too much for her own good. Whatever it was that was bothering him, she had a sneaky suspicion it was about her and was clearly not anything cheery. She wondered why he was doing this at all. He was so confusing. Boys were confusing. She needed to get away from all boys if possible and in the near future.

"Just go Ichigo".

Ichigo, after hearing the sound of her voice, turned to her slowly and frowned before stalking to her.

"I told you that I couldn't", He told her darkly. "I can't be without you…not now –not ever", He whispered so softly.

Rukia didn't know what she wanted to do more, leap up in joy or tell him that she felt the same way too, but a dark black cloud of realization began to creep into her little ray of sunshine.

"And what about Orihime?" She asked him, feeling so jealous at the moment that it was unbearably obvious

"Orihime." He said slowly and cautiously. "Don't worry, it's nothing", He told her calmly, but Rukia would not be brushed aside so easily, and she definitely wouldn't tolerate a boy who was two-timing her.

"Is she your girlfriend?" She asked, although she already knew the answer. Just the thought of it made her head spin.

"…"

"Is she, or is she not your girlfriend?" Rukia asked again, annoyed at the fact that he was trying to hide this fact from her.

"Yes".

The moment he said that, Rukia had no control over what her body was doing until a loud slap echoed throughout her room. She glared at him, heaving angrily, and shaking with small breaths of air.

Ichigo didn't move or seemed to be affected to it at all, but stood there towering above her, his bangs covering his expressive dangerous eyes. The only proof that it happened at all was the lingering red tint on his cheek. He touched his cheek almost slowly, unbelieving that she hit him and turned dark smoldering eyes towards her. She didn't turn away from his gaze but glared right back at him, not wanting him to get the better of her.

"Fuck you". She told him, emphasizing every syllable and hating him even more.

His only response was to grab her by her wrist and without any effort at all, pulled her against him. She landed on his chest and could feel her cheeks brighten red and her heart beat faster then before. She tried pulling it back, but it was no use. He had a hard grip on her and intended to use all of it against her.

"Shhh", he murmured, that husky sweet tone in his voice that she adored so much. His face was calm and gentle as he unclenched her fingers from her palms where four half moons nails bites were. Still gazing into her eyes, he bent down and kissed her knuckles before pressing his lips to her palm that made her heart melt and gasp.

She watched fascinated and lightheaded, feeling the heat of embarrassment grow on her cheeks as he showered her hand with small kisses that made her just a bit too responsive. When he reached the small half moon indents his brown eyes melted into an almost indescribable golden color, and then he did something that she didn't expect. He slipped his tongue to her palm and licked up the dried up blood welts, making sure to lick and kiss and nibble every single spot of her palm adoringly until Rukia could only stand there gasping in delight.

When his eyes met her again, she saw a flash of a memory pass through her, at almost the exact position before it faded away. When she looked at him again, he growled possessively wrapping both of his arms around her petite waist, drawing her in and whispering in her ear with a ragged breath, "Mine".

And then almost like last time, he kissed her, kissed her soul, probing her and possessing her, body and soul. It was the sort of kiss that made knees weak and speech impaired. Soft tantalizing lips traced her bottom lip and licked it sensually asking for permission and she opened her mouth and he greedily kissed her, making her feel as if she could burn from his kiss alone.

A burning began to form in her stomach along with a desire for more. Her hands wound around his neck and pulled him down to her and he greedily obeyed, deepening the kiss and tangling his tongue with hers in delightful warmth that she'd never felt before. His tongue stroked her lips knowingly and smiled when she gave a moan of want. She kissed him with much more want then she could mutter up and willingly let his mouth possess her in a dangerous call of seduction. She melted into his touch and purred lovingly when he pulled her against his lean body, aligning her soft body against his hard body, trapping her with his thigh. His body was like a God. A Gods body she wanted to sacrifice herself to, but as soon as it began, it stopped just as abruptly.

Her eyelids fluttered open curiously wondering why the delicious feeling flowing throughout her veins was no longer throbbing, but Ichigo smiled at her regretfully, his eyes once more a gentle, no longer the stone cold black.

He ran his thumb against her lips and groaned when her she nibbled against it lightly. "Perfect". He said, smiling when she didn't agree with him.

"No, you are. Not to sour, not to sweet. Just sweet enough for me to taste". He told her ear, brushing his lips dangerously and heatedly along her pale neck. His warm breath was causing her hair to stand up at ends, and his body was making her whole body shake with anticipation. His lips caressed her ear and she moaned shocked that the her desire for more hit her harder then ever, and shot her hand up to her mouth in embarrassment.

The sound of chuckling made her scowl, but he ignored it and took her hand gently, and wrapped them around this long firm ones. He kissed each knuckle softly and attentively as if he wanted to taste her forever.

When he began to pull away from her, she tried to follow but he only stopped her with his hand. "Go to sleep. Today's been –hard on you". He said caressing her cheek, admiring the way it was pale and smooth under his touch. He wanted to touch her like this forever.

"I'm not sleepy", she told him, but her words betrayed her when a yawn escaped from her mouth.

Ichigo chuckled causing his whole form to rumble in a way that made Rukia's nose tickle. "Don't worry, I'll come back tomorrow to check on how you're doing. Blimey you're a midget, no wonder it didn't take so long for you to get drunk. How much did you drink?"

She hesitated. "Eight shots." She told him truthfully, but regretted it immediately when he pulled away from her with a scowl she was way too used to.

"You idiot! Do you know how stupid that was? Don't you know your suppose to know your limit instead of _gobbling_ it down with that ARSE Knight!"

He was fuming and if she wasn't so mad at him for speaking to her like a little child she wasn't, she would have jumped into his arms and kissed him senseless until all he could think about was her, but that wasn't the situation at all. How could **HE** blame her for not knowing that if she drank _so bloody much_, that she would get this _fucked __**up**__?_

**THIS WAS ALL HIS FAULT!**

"I wouldn't have gotten so drunk if you weren't being such an arse!" She yelled at him harshly. She paused as if to really register the information and spoke again.

"What does Knight have to do with any of this?"

What he said surprised Rukia so much that she froze. The passionate fire in his eyes stopping all words from coming out at all.

"EVERYTHING!"

They stared at each other. Angry, arrogant and stubborn. Then something occurred to Rukia that she never thought would have ever happened to her.

"Your jealous", she accused.

His scowl deepened. "Jealous of what? Of Knight kissing a midget?"

Rukia's cheeks grew warm. _God he was an arse, and a horrible liar. Why couldn't he just admit it!_

"Liar you jus told me that I was perfect, you… you HYPROCRITE!" She said louder than she intended it to be.

"Well just because I said it, don't let it get to your small little head. Every guy does it when he wants to get something". He said in that sort of voice that made her cringe.

She flinched. Her already tiny balloon sized ego was deflated by now. When he tried to touch her cheek, she slapped the offending limb away from her.

"Rukia" The sound of her name coming out of his lips compelled her to stop in her steps. She turned to him, not bothering to hold back the pain and humiliation he caused her. The only sort of pain when you realized just how gone you are.

"What? Do you want to tell me I'm an ugly fat tart too, or are you done being a prick?" She said hatefully. Her nails digging into her palm once more.

He looked at her palm and frowned.

"No". He grunted out and she shot him the bird before marching to her bed, but his hand shot to her wrist and she glared at the offending limb again.

"Are you crying?" The sound of his voice sounded surprised and she attentively touched her cheek and to her utter embarrassment she was. Unconsciously she tried to wipe the tears away but only caused the blood on her palm to spread onto her pale white skin. The contrast drastic between pure white and bloody red.

"What?" She asked afraid she looked horribly ugly with her eyes all red and scrunched up. She tried to cover her face, but a hand stopped her. She stared up confused and gasped when she saw a flash of red pass through his eyes as he bent down to her. The drenched color of red was all it took to send a hauntingly familiar image of a face scrunched up in anger to quicken her heart in fear. Her only nightmare.

But instead of the passionate kiss she was sure he was going to give her, as if sensing her discomfort, he tilted her chin up and trailed warm inviting finger to her cheek and then slid into her hair to gently tug her closer. Rukia, not knowing what to do, cautiously let him pull her forward until she was leaning up, staring at his deep brown eyes, no longer tense.

He seemed to be contemplating something because of the way his eyebrows were scrunched up in concentration and the way lines began to form in his forehead, and then snapped out of it as if he had found a new resolution.

"Your much more sensitive than I thought" He said. He smiled as if in thought again and rubbed his calloused fingers along her already sensitive lips. "Silly girl", He chuckled and she frowned.

He bent down, even closer then he had ever been to her, his thigh separating her as if to leave her open wide for him and his hard body pressing against her soft one that made them too complete. She could feel every part of him and she was sure he too could do the same. Their foreheads touched, and in this position, it would only lead to more kissing.

"_Are you afraid?"_ he asked her, his warm breath tingling her face. She was going to ask him of what? Losing him or him himself, but she wasn't even able to ask for his lips had already dominated her, stroking her lips and welcoming her to join his sensual dance until she greedily obeyed. This kiss was so much different from the rest. It was hungry, yearning, deep and uncontrolling. It was as if he was stroking her feelings itself and making her heart beat faster with each stroke of his tongue and nibble of his teeth.

His lips left her lips, trailing kissing and nibbles onto her neck and her shoulder and she grasped onto him hard, afraid that she might fall too hard. He did this for a few minutes liking the way she was a pile of moaning pleasure. He seemed particularly fascinated with the spot between her ear and jaw, sucking on it at first gently and then harder to sooth it with a lick of his tongue. And all through this, Rukia was gripping his biceps, trying hard not to fall in his all too much enthusiastic attention. After he found that spot throughrouly loved and adored, he went back to kissing and licking up her face.

At first she was terribly embarrassed that he was licking her but quickly shoved it down when she felt how good it was when he trailed it along her neck and onto her shoulder. When he was done, he leaned his forehead against her shoulder and breathed hard, still holding her close and tight.

They stood there, backing in the aftermath of a mind-blowing snog and she couldn't help but feel wanted and loved. When he pulled his head up, his bright ginger hair fell into his eyes and Rukia pushed it away loving the way his eyes followed her. She laid her head onto his chest, feeling his chest rise and fall with his breathing, and smiled when he laid his cheek onto her head and nuzzled her fondly.

Rukia closed her eyes and snuggled into his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist to get closer to his warmth as much as possible. The vibrating of his chest when he chuckled made her heart flutter. Trailing fingers from behind her knee and fluidly as if it didn't take as much effort as it should have carried her bridal style to her bed.

Rukia could already feel herself lose a battle to sleep. One she desperately needed but could not. She could not because of a more selfish reason to stay awake with Ichigo for just a bit longer. After all, she never knew when she would ever be able to see him again, if he still wanted to come.

When Ichigo attempted to take off the death grip she had on his chest, she mumbled something like 'no' and tried holding on tighter when her body was slowly losing energy as it is. Ichigo touched her hand and whispered into her ear.

"Sleep". He ordered, and she did.

It wasn't until the next morning when she drinking a glass of orange juice and sipping onto a bottle of Pepto Bismo, that she realized that he had done it again. He had swayed her mind from what she wanted to know and used it to his advantage by getting her at her weakest moment.

If he thought she was going to ignore it and let him walk all over her while he two-timed her with her only friend he was going to find out that Rukia Kuchiki was no pushover.


	8. Breaking and Entering

**Chapter eight: ****Breaking and Entering**

"Kuchiki-san, what do you think about this dress? Is it too much?" Orihime asked, holding out a brilliant colored violet Vera Wang dress against her frame. Orihime stared at herself in a 3-way mirror and looked intently at herself, debating whether she wanted it or not.

Rukia nodded, checked her watch and then began tapping her feet in rapidly in boredom, not really listening to what Orihime had said at all. Orihime sensed her distant voice and asked her again except this time louder. Rukia after hearing it for the second time glanced at the dress Orihime held against her and smiled genuinely. "It looks beautiful Orihime. Your blue eyes really compliment the color of the dress, they look dramatically stunning."

And it was true. It brightened Orihime's eyes in a way that made it seem as if there was a ray of light aimed perfectly at her eyes. Something Rukia was immensely jealous of. It was hard to hate someone when they were so unbelievably perfect and genuinely nice.

For the last few days she had left in London, (before she went on her trip to town) was left spent hanging with Orihime and her friends. Orihime being the nice girl she was, made it her mission to spend every-single minute with her. They had biked through all the parks, went to four different shopping markets, visited the zoo, took the subway to France for the weekend and had a huge slumber party in four days with nonstop rest in between.

She had to admit that hanging out with Orihime was fun, because she always had something fun to do and something interesting to say that kept her good company.

Even the slumber party was fun, of course only after the girls got over their resentment towards her for "Snogging" Knight and reluctantly let her in their good graces.

Orihime and the others girls, mainly Tatsuki showed her the better sides of shopping and fashion, until she was as much of a fashionista as they were, just not the flashy glitz and glam that everyone liked. Instead she chose for the more "boy meets girls" look. Clean stripes and prints that complimented her small curves but still let her indulge in the boyish clothes. She even came to love a designer that made clothes that looked like it was for boys but fit girls perfectly, just exactly what she wanted.

Orihime and Tatsuki were really –_really_ supportive of her artificial relationship with Knight, but she always tried not to bring it up because when she did, Orihime would start talking about Ichigo, which was not a conversation she wanted to be talking about with Orihime. But it was a subject that Orihime loved to talk about. But she let her indulge in her memeories; even though it hurt to see those tell tale sign of hickeys along her necks when she told them about Ichigo and the sweet things he did for her. But that wasn't all.

Her adoration and admiration for Ichigo surprised Rukia immensely, but with time, she supposed that that was just the way Orihime was, she was just the sort of girl that looked at life through rose-colored glasses. Romantic, but naïve as Orihime was, it was that same trait that Rukia liked and admired about Orihime.

Orihime looked at her silent thoughtfulness. "Is this too boring, Kuchiki-san? We could go get some ice cream if you would like?" She said with a smile.

That immediately got Rukia's attention and she nodded enthusiastically when her stomach growled. She blushed in her utter chagrin, and Orihime giggled delicately behind her hand.

"Then I'll just pay for it right now." Orihime told her and pulled out her credit card and scanned it before linking arms with Rukia and exciting the store, talking enthusiastically about the ice cream they wanted.

-

"Ok I'll call you tomorrow, when I get to Winchester," Rukia said to her celly and then paused to think when the other line asked her a question before smiling fondly. "Of course I'll try your newest ice cream creation, Orihime. Who knew mint chocolate chip ice cream and fries would taste so good?"

Orihime laughed on the other line before saying a quick good bye and hung up. Rukia entered her room and dropped her flat key onto her desk and slipped out of her black skinny Seven Jeans for all Mankind and gray striped woolen Top shop sweater. Lazily, she pulled her black hair tie out of her hair and let loose her silky waves sway against her back. Rukia sighed again and slipped into her sweat shorts and cotton long-sleeved, before she rubbed her eyes sleepily and slipped into bed, moaning her content at its fluffiness.

Unconsciously, Rukia let her eyes flutter to the window and smiled maliciously. There in front of her balcony window, was a thick-doubled knotted rope tied around the knob and an iron rod stuck in between the handles, something that shouldn't have been there but was. Rukia was keeping someone out and to ensure that absolutely no one could get into her room, she had her windows nailed down with straps of wood in rows of crosses. Although this blocked her view of the white moon, she was glad that she also wasn't able to see that stupid two-timer bugger pervert of a boy Ichigo, anymore and **that** brought a _smile_ to her face.

She smirked. He wouldn't even have the opportunity to come near her again and _**woo**_ again –_not even close._

With that in mind, she turned on her side and let her mind drift into the beginnings of a light slumber, but at that moment, she jerked up in surprise and disbelief when a crash at her window broke through all of her barriers. Startled she stood up with wide eyes and her jaw dropped.

There in the middle of all the wood and rumble, the steel bar bent in the middle, clouded in darkness stood the stupid two-timing pervert himself.

Ichigo.

_Incredibly handsome, highwayman._

At first sight she thought he looked on the brink of madness but his casual stance and the position of his body said otherwise. He wore a simple gray coat and black slacks. One hand was fisted in his pocket and the other was tousled into his silky hair. A printed scarf slung around his neck. Dear lord, he looked like he just walked off a Boss Fashion Runway. Even in her distressed state of mind, she could never deny the attraction she felt for him.

Trying to hold the last ounce of hate she held for him, she thought about the twisting knife deep feeling she felt that night and brought it up to surface.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you? Do you think you can break into anyone's house just like that!" She asked outraged at the fact that her room was now messy with random pieces of wood, all along her ebony carpet.

When he did nothing but stare at her with golden brown eyes, she realized that she could care less and got off her bed. "You know what? I don't even care what your thinking –**GET OUT OF MY ROOM**!!"

Ichigo raised his eyebrow and his lips curved upwards. Completely ignoring her, he closed the glass door to her balcony that surprisingly didn't shatter into millions of shards, and slowly…ever so slowly began to stalk towards her.

His eyes spoke to her, telling her -no more like _warning_ her, that anyone who was smart, would listen to what he had to say, but she wouldn't take this from him! Especially from someone who thought she was the typical docile and obedient Asian.

"If you step any closer I'-". But Rukia wasn't able to finish her sentence when determined lips crashed onto her, crushing her body into his in a mesh of warm bodies.

She moaned in the back of her throat in complaint but it disappeared when his lips descended down her neck and found a spot that had her goo in his arms. In her last chance of denial, of the pleasures she was feeling, and the sensations he was creating, she let the hands that were knuckles deep into his hair to slowly but firmly push against his shoulders. But this was near impossible. All he did was nibble her lips in displeasure and grabbed the back of her thighs and lift her completely off the floor and ground right her into him. His lips were demanding, firm and most of unmistakably punishing.

The inner Rukia was screaming at her for letting him do such unspeakable things to her virgin body, but the other was just drooling and begging for him to continue.

Confident and possessive lips licked and kissed along her jaw and all Rukia could do was sigh and try to kiss him back. Then he lowered his head and nuzzled her neck before tracing a trail of butterfly kisses up to her lips that had her toes curling in sensation.

What he said next confused her, but did not displease her, sending her heart pumping and angsty since the moment he arrived. "Don't you ever lock me out again. Never leave me." Rukia nodded and he growled in retaliation before whispering to her lips the same thing he said to her once before. "Mine."

And when he kissed her again, it was a gentle, slow loving kiss but had just as much passion and determination as it had before. When his tongue slipped into her mouth, she jumped up in surprise, but soon felt weightless when his warm tongue wrapped around hers in a dance that was so sweet and honest it brought embarrassing tears to her eyes.

How could anyone kiss with _so much_ –_so much_ _**love**_ in it, but somehow find a way to love someone else. When he tried to brush away her crystallized tears, she turned her head and nudged for him to let her go –he did.

Turning her back to him, she felt her chest constrict and crossed her arms around her chest, feeling vulnerable and emotional all of a sudden.

"Rukia" Ichigo called to her softly. Confused as hell, as to why she was crying after that incredible snog. Did she even realize how beautiful she looked there crying under the moonlight?

Rukia let out a choked sob she wasn't aware she kept in and turned to him with a frown marred onto her face. "Ichigo, I can't do this, -this thing with you. I can't be with you when you're with my friend! Do you even know how much Orihime loves you? Orihime would be so crushed and humiliated to find out that **you**, who she adores so openly and unselfishly, are cheating on **her **with _**me**_. Her friend. How can you kiss me and kiss her too? HOW COULD YOU!"

With every sentence, Rukia grew angrier and foolish for even liking him in the first place. He was just the same as all of the other boys. In fact, he was even worse than Knight! At least when Knight was kissing her, she knew for a fact that he didn't have another girlfriend waiting for him…or thinking about.

By the end, she was yelling so loud, she was sure that her brother had heard, and sure enough, she heard the stomping noises to the front of her door.

**Thump. Thump. Thump.**

The doorknob slowly began to open and Rukia shot skeptical eyes to Ichigo, who seemed annoyed at the interruption and stepped back and onto her balcony, disappearing into the shadows. His discarded coat still hung over her chair.

The door to her room opened with a loud bang, before a worried brother walked in. "Rukia, what's wrong? What happened to your window?" Byakuya asked surprised. He swept skeptical eyes all over the room.

Rukia smiled sheepishly and raked her mind for an explanation and spit whatever came to thought. "I wanted to see the stars so I tore it down?" Rukia said, sweat dropping realizing how ridiculous that sounded, but luckily Byakuya didn't find this at all odd, for she did a lot of _odd_ things.

"Goodnight then. I'll see you in the morning," he said and closed the door slow enough to hear Rukia say "Goodnight ni-sama". Byakuya smiled, but only in his mind for Kuchiki men didn't smile –a lot.

When Rukia heard the click of the door, she sighed and slumped to the floor, too frustrated and tired to think any longer or be angry for the matter. She watched as Ichigo walked slowly to her before kneeling next to her. She felt his long fingers touch her hair cautiously that made her shiver in delight. She did not move or encourage the action, hating him was an awfully hard job to accomplish. When he spoke again, his voice was soft and sincere. Not the complete cave man he was just a second ago. When she looked up again, his eyes were a molten colored brown, almost gold.

"Come with me. I'll make it up to you," Ichigo said with that silly grin and she sighed in defeat. There was no way she could ever stay mad at him for long. And even though she wanted answers for all of her questions, it was the truth in the answers that got her worried. _After all, who wants to know the truth when the truth could possibly hurt you?_ Taking his outstretched hand, Rukia felt a wave of deja-vu flow through her, a torn up image of someone holding her hand tightly, but as soon as it resurfaced, it was gone and she decided to ignore it for now. He brought their hands together and pressed his lips to their combined palms reassuringly and she relaxed instantly.

Ichigo smiled confidently and pulled her out to the window, just when she registered the full text of his words.

"How are you going to make it up to me exactly?" Rukia asked suspiciously, stopping any movements further.

"What are you scared of? Afraid I might lock you in a tower forever?" Ichigo teased lightly, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. She stared fixated before she grumbled and looked away. The thought of forever was becoming to sound awfully lovely, if only with Ichigo. "You have so many secrets. I don't know how I'm going to keep up with you and your 'mysterious and unpredictable' personality." Rukia said exasperated.

Ichigo frowned for a moment and scowled before crossing his arms around his chest. "Will you come with me, or not? It's your choice. In plus," He said narcistically, "The Girls love the mysterious thing, so don't complain."

"Not me," She said, annoyed that he was comparing her to every other girl he met, and surly fell for him.

Ichigo grinned a knowing smile at her but did not comment.

"I'm serious," Rukia growled, but it only made Ichigo smile lopsided before trailing fingers lightly against her tensed jaw. "Do you know you turn a pretty pink when you get flustered?"

Rukia, after hearing this odd compliment, flushed even brighter and swapped his hand away before stomping away. "Your not even taking me seriously. I bet you didn't even listen to a thing a said, before pulling your pervert charms on me –again! I don't want to go anymore I –" but a strong grip on her wrist stopped the flow of words from escaping her mouth.

"I do listen to what you say." He told her sincerely. "You just distract me so much with your expressive emotions that it gets me sidetracked. _Please_ come with me." Ichigo finished honestly and after a speech like that Rukia could only give in to his demands.

"Fine. But you have to buy me something to eat". Then at that moment, her stomach growled so loud that it made Ichigo jump up in surprise.

"What the bugger do you have in there? A monster?" He teased. Rukia glared at him and he put his arms up in defeat. "Ok. Ok Put a coat on and meet me in the lobby." Ichigo said to her as he shrugged on his gray coat and began walking out of her balcony, but she stopped him.

"Wait! How are you getting down, there's no fire escape ladder in this flat!" Rukia asked questionably. The thought of him jumping a thirty feet flat and falling right on his face made her worried and a bit skittish.

Ichigo smiled mischievously. "Oh I get my way around" and then like that he disappeared out of her balcony.

Rukia blinked, and stared at the spot Ichigo was last seen before sighing and slipping back into her skinnys and striped sweater with her turquoise peacoat. After combing her hair, Rukia stared at her image in the mirror and frowned disapprovingly.

"What's gotten into you?" she said to herself. The tomboy she knew was long gone and somehow replaced with this girl who now followed the wills of a boy she hardly knew. For Kami's sake she didn't even know his last name, or where he was born, or what school he went to if he went to school at all, or his age! She knew so little of him that she still wasn't sure what really attracted her to him in the first place. But it was there. This almost desperate and soulful longing she felt for him that attracted her. This feeling was new to her and intrigued her to the point of following. But that didn't make up for it! What she did know was that he was not a colorful person. He loved to tease her and was easily temperamental and was very possessive. After all, he told her twice already that he thought she was his, but it wasn't the possessiveness that had her worried. It was the feeling she got every time he said it. Every time he said "Mine" she would interpret it as "I love you" and that already sent red flags to her mind. Love? Was it love that she felt for him, but Rukia forced herself to dismiss it. It was bad to think like that, but it was even worse to hope, or even worse **wish** for him to say it.

She stared at herself again, recognizing the baby-faced girl in the mirror with the alien eyes. For a few moments she did this until she grew frustrated and pinched her cheeks until they turned a rosy color. Grabbing her white beanie, she put it on and sneaked out of her room, and out of the flat. For once Rukia was glad that her brother was such a hard sleeper.


	9. Too many questions, not enough answers

**Chapter Nine: ****Too many questions, not many answers**

When Rukia finally reached the lobby, a scatter of people still remained, lingering around talking to people, checking their mail and coming in from work. Rukia immediately spotted Ichigo near the doorway, leaning against it and speaking to Ishida whom she had just met at the party, and also lived in the same flat complex as her. From what she could see, Ichigo and Ishida were in some sort of silent meeting but there was something odd in the way they stood and looked at each other. Ichigo was staring at Ishida as if he had told him something dire and Ishida looked as obedient and resilient as a soldier to his captain. In fact it looked exactly like that, from the way Ichigo's body was turned to Ishida and the Ishida's body stood straight and rigid.

_What are they talking about? _Confused, Rukia began to walk to them casually and was not at all surprised to see the two of them immediately stop talking.

"Hi Ishida-kun. How are you?" Rukia asked conversationally.

"Fine, thank you for asking", Ishida responded politely before turning to Ichigo once more with a nod. "I'll call you later". Then scurried into the elevator and disappeared out of her sight.

Rukia frowned at his retreating back and sent questioning glances at Ichigo. "What was that all about?"

"Nothing, just business", Ichigo said gruffly, somehow she had a feeling that he was happy from speaking to Ishida.

Rukia frowned. "Why would you have business with Ishida? I didn't even know that you knew him." Rukia asked. She was sure that Ishida and Ichigo had never crossed paths. Ishida had left the party way before Ichigo had arrived.

"Yeah, I know him" Ichigo said while guiding her out of the lobby and out onto the streets keeping a comforting arm around her waist. "He lives right above me".

"You're his neighbor" Rukia asked incredibly. "We live in the same flat?" She asked not believing the words coming out of his mouth.

"Yeah. You were jus tot busy trying to think of mysterious ways for me to get into your room", Ichigo teased, and steered her away from a passing group of teenagers who giggled when he passed by. Rukia rolled her eyes.

"I knew you had a thing for the silent and mysterious guys". He said smoothly and the inner Rukia melted.

"Well, she said, that doesn't explain anything. How can you also get onto my balcony? The only way to get in is if you…" Then Rukia stop midsentence when realization began to creep in.

"Your that man that lives right next to me?" Said Rukia, horrified that it all made perfect sense now. How he was able to come onto her balcony and be there when she was. It was all because he was a mere ten feet away from her through one measly wall that separated them. Ichigo, who she could have seen, waiting anxiously for him to appear out of thin air once again.

"Yeah, come on, we're almost there. Don't give me that look midget. I thought you were hungry?"

"I am."

"Then hurry up before it closes soon." He said and pulled her around a corner and into a dimmed quiet little restaurant. Not completely forgetting about her questions she sent him a glare that told him that she wasn't finished with him, which he acknowledged with a grin of victory before pulling her by the waist and stealing a chaste kiss.

"What are we getting?" Rukia blushed, unexpected by the surprise kiss and asked him while eyeing the run down restaurant with an accusing eye. The restaurant seemed desolate besides the tiny little Asian man drinking a cup of Joe and reading the newspaper.

"Are you in the mood for sushi and miso soup or would you rather get something else?"

"Japanese food!" Rukia said with enthusiasm. The last time she got a hold of Japanese food was when she was 11. She had spent the entire summer at her grandparent's home. Rukia's tummy growled in anticipation, remembering clearly how fat and chubby, but delectably happy she was after a month full of delicious Japanese cuisines.

Ichigo smiled and looked around. "Yeah, where the hell is Urahara?" and then he leaned over the counter and rang the service bell. After five consecutive and annoying loud rings, Rukia snatched the bell away and pulled on Ichigo's coat. "Maybe he's not here. Let's just go somewhere else, I'm so hungry I could eat a cow!"

Ichigo grinned at this but before he could comment, a man with bleach blond hair and a green striped hat strolled in from a hidden door.

"Kurosaki! Now what can I do for you?" The man asked after looking at Rukia with a quizzical brow. "And who do we have here?"

Rukia blushed, shying behind Ichigo's back, which Ichigo subtly allowed and snorted before crossing his arms against his chest that made him look all badass.

"None of your danm business, you dirty old man," he said practically growled, probably use to his antics. Urahara backed off and chuckled under his breath.

"What can I get you then?"

Ichigo scowled. "California rolls, Spicy tuna rolls and cucumber rolls to go with miso soup for two," Ichigo told the man while the man scribbled onto a blank piece of parchment.

"Would you also like some chocolate covered strawberries?" he asked teasingly, sparing Rukia a wink when Ichigo wasn't looking.

Ichigo growled under his breathe about 'dirty old men' and sent the man a glare, which the man raised both his hands up in the air sheepishly.

"Ok, no strawberries." He promised and promptly left with the promise to be back in ten minuets.

While they waited, Rukia's thoughts were sent back to her thoughts in her room and with the extra time waiting she guessed it would be the perfect opportunity to start thinking right now, or at least reasonably. Because if she were to be truthful to herself, she was starting to think she was moving way too fast into this bizarre relationship she had with Ichigo. And then the questions about who Ichigo really was began to plague her mind. It didn't help that her dreams pictured him as the maniac and then in others he was a past life lover.

The hand threaded into his cool long ones tightened, and she looked up to his trademark scowl.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing", she said a bit too quickly. "It's just that this whole thing is so confusing," she said accusingly.

About what?" he asked, this time truly confused. His eyebrows perked up in a way that made her want to say 'how cute'! But she reframed herself from doing it.

"EVERYTHING!" She said throwing up her hands dramatically as he had done before when they spoke of Knight. With her hands free, she two steps away from him with her arms crossed in annoyance.

"I don't know anything about you at all for that matter, nothing, Zippo, nada, and I don't even know how old you are! For all I know you could be a dirty old man!

A light bulb lit in Ichigo's brain and it finally dawned on him what her little fit was all about. Smiling fondly at her, he grasped her hand and pulled her gently to him, which she reluctantly let him. Embracing her in his arms, he ruffled her hair and rested his chin onto the top of her head.

"Silly love", he chuckled, sending that sensation coursing through her. Even his laugh sent little rays of sunshine into her heart. Man she was starting to get dorky.

"If you want to know something don't bite my head and beat around the bush and expect me to be able to read your mind", he said teasingly. "Although I wish I could, your not the only one confused around here."

"I don't believe you", she said. "You certainly don't act like it", her purple eyes flashing darkly like a storm as if waiting for him to say the wrong thing when his ocher brown eyes looked into her and their foreheads touched.

"Yeah, but I don't worry about it. If it's the right time it'll come". Confident that what he said was true, she sighed and snuggled on his chest and drew her cold hands under his coat to keep them warm.

"Brrrr…your hands are cold," he said while shaking when she pressed her palms flat out onto his wool gray sweater underneath. She laughed and pulled them out of press them against her cheeks and then onto Ichigo's.

"Warm", he moaned and she nodded in agreement and pulled her hand back when fingers enclosed around them and pressed once more against Ichigo's cheek as he rubbed it fondly along his lips and cheeks.

Rukia flushed under from his affectionate side and watched him nuzzle her hand lovingly and then plant sweet little kisses to her hand, staring at her with those intense molten brown eyes. She could feel herself melting and she wasn't sure if she liked it or not.

"Uh-hum", a cough was heard and Rukia ducked behind Ichigo as fast as she could to hide the embarrassment of getting caught in such a promising position. Blushing furiously, she glared at Ichigo who chuckled at her and grabbed her around the waist before grabbing the food. He then gracefully passed him 3 pounds and pulled her out after an awkward farewell.

After they left the store, Ichigo checked his watch and swore before walking faster holding a death grip on her hand. "What's the hurry?" She whined after she tripped after a can and then into a dark alley. Once again her dreams began to interfere with her judgment and she looked away in fear.

"I want to get there before the guards leave". He told her, pulling her by the waist and lifting her over a large puddle of morning rain.

"He's about to leave", he said checking the time on his wrist with the speed that almost seemed inhuman. But she erased that thought from her mind, not wanting to let her wild imagination get the better of her judgment.

Rukia looked at the end of the alleyway. The streetlights of the end flickered on and off, but the familiarity of the area made Rukia pause.

"Why are we going this way, there's only an old library up ahead?"

Ichigo grinned mischievously and grabbed her hand before whispering in her ear, "Are you afraid?" But Rukia only stared at his hand and hers and smirked.

"Never". But she lied. She was scared. Scared that when she woke up from this dream, she'd still be stuck in this alley while Ichigo ran ahead of her towards the light, leaving her behind.


	10. Dark memories

**Chapter Ten: ****Dark memories**

"Are we allowed to be here?" Rukia asked timidly, blindly following him into the usually bright and welcoming library, which transformed into a dark and cold place.

"Why wouldn't we?"

Rukia tugged on his biceps, trying hard not to let herself get distracted by the unbelievably sexy muscle she just found on his sex god body.

"Well, maybe because we're breaking into a library in the middle of the night!" She said, practically stating the obvious.

"Who says we're breaking in?" He told her stopping to turn around and wiggle his eyebrows at her mischievously, which received him a playful punch.

"I work here." He said calmly.

"You work here!" Rukia said just a bit too loudly. Her voice echoed off the walls and Rukia clamped her hand over her mouth in fright.

With a softer voice she continued in surprise, "You're a librarian?"

Then without even a bit of shame, images of a sexy lean and mysterious disheveled Ichigo sitting down surrounded by dusty novels and half moon glasses slumped against his straight aristocrat nose. Just the image of kissing Ichigo in a library around books made her cheeks flame.

"Yeah, why?" Ichigo asked suspiciously.

Rukia shrugged nervously and cupped her red cheeks against her cold hands in hope that he didn't notice the very faint pink slowly fading, but it was all in vain.

"Is it too warm in here, your turning pink." Ichigo said with concern until he grinned knowledgably and smirked. "Oh, I see, what sort of dirty things were you thinking of huh?" he asked her while taking off his coat on a nearby table and stepping into her personal space with that glint in his eye.

Rukia gulped and tried glaring at him with all her might but failed miserably. "…W-what do you mean?" Stop being such a...such a…" Rukia trailed off.

"Such a what?" he asked huskily, already backing her up into the back of a shelf case.

"I…I well you know! I wasn't thinking like that!" Rukia said hysterically, pushing against his chest to show her honesty and put some distance between them.

"I see", he said after a long pause. He took a step back and grinned. "You're a terrible liar, did you know that?"

Rukia glared at him and without a single warning landed a nice one right across his face.

THUD.

"You bloody prat!" Rukia screamed at him. Ichigo moaned while rubbing his hand gently at his swollen cheek slowly. His shaggy bangs began to fall over his eyes that made her feel like she'd seen that before, except near a river close to the forest while the sun was beginning to come down. A cold sweat began to form on her forehead and then a sharp jab until she felt herself falling upside down into an empty abbess. There was a blinding light and that image again of Ichigo and then black once more.

-

"_Rukia come back to earth"._ Rukia heard absently as she saw a hand wave slowly in front of her face.

"W-what just happened?"

Rukia shook her head. What was that? It was like all of a sudden she was not here in this time space and in two places at once. It was like de-ja-vu.

"Are you okay?" Ichigo asked with trepidation, while rubbing her eyebrows soothingly.

Rukia could only stare dumbfounded. "It was so weird, I felt like I just had a de-ja-vu for a second, but that couldn't have happened could it?" Rukia asked looking at Ichigo for reassurance. Instead of that silly grin she adored, she was confused to see a troubled look beyond his eyes, but instead of questioning him any further, she tugged her hand away and he let it go immediately.

"Let's eat", he said without looking at her.

"Ok", she said calmly before following him into another room wondering what in the world was wrong with him.

-

Dinner with Ichigo was long, quiet and awkward. Although Ichigo sat right next to her, she felt like he was miles away. So instead of eating like she should have, she watched Ichigo behind her glossy midnight bangs and studied his movements like a hawk, deciphering the position of his body and the glint of his eyes. Sometimes they would turn a molten gold and then swirled back to warm chocolate. Once she thought she saw a flash of red cross his eyes but she quickly dismissed it as a trick of the light from above them.

And all throughout this, Ichigo would continue to stare tensely at his bowl of miso soup and miss his mouth as he put a piece of sushi into his mouth. If Ichigo had any indication that he knew she was watching, he didn't show it and instead slipped even deeper into his thoughts.

Feeling a bit abandoned and at loss of words, for she was not any good at comfort, she drew her attention elsewhere and decided to wander around. After telling Ichigo what she was doing, he gave her a quick glance and an even quicker nod and presumed his empty state of being.

Rukia walked around the library, and felt a wave of raw excitement. The fact that she was in such an old library in the middle of the night surrounded by millions of books much older than she was. All around the library, the windows let in the moonlight colors of red, orange purple and blue through the colored glass. A long spiraling staircase led to the second floor where the ceiling opened up to the limitless sky.

For a moment or two, Rukia stared up at the sky adoringly and gazed longingly at the moon for it to stay this beautiful before following a light towards a long straight hallway behind the staircase. Rows and rows of bookshelves were aligned by shapes and sizes depicting names of men and women that Rukia only knew half of. Stories of witches, kings, thieves, princesses, corsets, swords, forests, and happy endings. These were the sorts of stories Rukia adored the most but instead of picking her usual novels of fantasy, she picked up a book of poems and continued to follow the hallway to the light at the end. Once in a while, if she saw a novel that took her interest, she plucked it out and cradled it to her chest. As she got closer and closer to the end, she was surprised to find a small candlelit room with a cracking fireplace already running. Sighing in delight from the warmth of the fire, she walked in and spotted a brown love cushion by the fire and decided that that spot was perfect for her to sit.

_Perfect_, she thought. _I'll just stay here until…well things get less tense_, she trailed off.

But it wasn't as if she didn't want to be near Ichigo when he wasn't acting like himself. He was just so distant and cold and emotionless and calculating that when he wasn't looking at her, he looked like an entirely different person. It scared her and yet made her worry. She was afraid that if she offered help, it would seem not entirely genuine and only for her self interest and she did not want to make things awkward between them so she kept her mouth shut and sent worried looks.

One time during dinner, she had tried to touch and comfort him but he had stopped her with his voice and she immediately pulled her hand back, feeling rejected and hurt but understanding that he didn't want what she offered and left him to his silence because she could offer him nothing but her presence.

Rukia stretched luxuriously and lazily onto the love cushion and rolled onto her stomach so that she watched the flames crackle and the warmth of the fire caress her face with heat.

Long cool fingers swept through her hair, entangling in its lightness and caressing it to shivers. Surprised at the sudden intrusion, she shot up out of her seat and glanced around to see auburn coffee colored eyes stare right back at her. Not disturbing or fierce but thoughtful.

"I knew I would find you here. You don't like being in the dark, do you."

Not at all understanding what he had said, she just stared openly into his seemingly calm serene face for any indication that he was on something, but she didn't want to seem like such a snooty tart, so she didn't say anything at all.

"That's not true. I happen to love the night more than the day." she said matter a fact. Trying to put some light into their conversation.

She turned to him with her eyes brightly shining. "I love the night because it's so dark and cold, and mysterious". But what she really wanted to say was because it was about the only time she ever got to see him and because it was always so romantic and dreamy, but she would never admit that to him of all people.

"In plus, she added, its always so much more fun when its dark, you get to feel more wild and out of control!" She said teasingly, wiggling her eyebrows that made him chuckle.

She smiled, happy that he was finally back to normal.

"Haven't you ever felt that way?" She prodded him. "Like you could just let yourself go and lose absolutely all control?"

Ichigo only smiled down at her fondly, tousling her hair in a way that made her think of how her brother use to do that to her.

"Losing control isn't as much fun as it seemed, its dangerous and unpredictable." He murmured down to her, his eyelashes covering his warm eyes to make them look almost like her was looking at her with adoration and love, but it had to be a trick of the eye.

"Have you ever lost control?" She asked, afraid to know what the answer was, but hoping that her gut feelings were right.

"Yes, once a long time ago." The glaze and cloudy look on his face told her that this was something that she shouldn't touch, but her curiosity got the better of her.

"How old were you?"

This seemed to surprise Ichigo and he grinned lopsidedly.

"I was 17. A real arse at that time, you could say."

Rukia raised an eyebrow and did a full body check. "If you were 17, how old are you now?" She asked.

Ichigo swept his fingers through his hair and then thrummed his fingers on the desk before finally answering.

"I guess I'm 21".

"You guess? What do you mean you guess?" Rukia demanded, but instead of answering once more, he got up from his sitting position next to her and retrieves two mugs on the fireplace mantle that he came in with that she did not notice before. Rukia watched fascinated by the way the flames seem to highlight Ichigo's warm tan skin, and her thoughts began to wonder how far exactly that tan went. When he turned back, her heart began to hammer in her chest as his beautiful bronze eyes lit up and made his eyes more smoldering under the light of the fireplace.

"Hot chocolate?'' he asked her, offering the dark blue mug which she accepted with a mumbled 'thank you'.

After settling himself down, he pulled a discarded blanket from the side and pulled it over her shoulder and pulled her against his shoulders.

"Warm enough?" He whispered in her ear.

"Uh-huh". She said sheepishly and rested her head onto the crook of his neck and shoulder. He reciprocated the motion by resting his head onto her head and she sighed in delight, snuggling deeper into his warmth when he broke the silence with a chuckle.

"What?" She asked bewildered.

"Nothing". He said. "You look so lovely when your not being mean to me."

Trying to sit up, she was pushed onto his chest as he ran his fingers through her hair once more.

"I'm not mean to you." She said confidently.

"Well you aren't nice either. Just a bit…aggressive. I mean look at this!" He said pulling her hand to rub at the slowly turning purple bruise on his warm cheek.

"I don't think friends punch each other." He said smartly.

"Friends." She repeated after him. Was that really what they were now –friends? She wondered slightly if friends kissed each other

with fever and confessed their need for one another. Is that what friends truly did? Rukia thought. The creeping feeling began to climb up her throat and she began to feel a strange and unwelcoming wetness begin to form in her eye, but not wanting the stupid word get the better of her, she hid it with a yawn.

"Well that was a friendly punch", she said sarcastically. "It was just a joke."

"A joke? I don't understand how you could punch one of your girlfriends as a joke."

"Because they never were girls", Rukia said looking for her discarded books. Really anything to distract her from Ichigo right now. "I never had any girlfriends, only a lot of boyfriends".

"You mean boy friends right? Not the other boyfriend." Ichigo growled, but Rukia paid no attention to him and nodded absently to find a book of poems with her favorite poem, The Highway Man by Alfred Noyes.

Ok, maybe she was being at bit childish, she thought, but moments with Ichigo always made her feel like that. After reading only a couple of lines, she was distracted once more by a teasing nose, running up and down her throat, tickling her and making her feel all flush all over.

"Stop that." She told him, but she lacked meaning and force, so Ichigo continued.

"Why?" He whispered against her neck, rubbing his nose around her ear to replace it with his lips.

"Don't kiss me", she warned him in a quiet moan, but before he could even chuckle about it she jerked out of his touch. Staring down at him, she told herself that she just couldn't go back into those arms just yet.

"I thought we were friends?'' She clarified

"Yeah, we are."

"Then why are you trying to kiss me? Friends don't kiss friends, especially not like that."

Rukia fought hard not to let that part out, but it came out as a word vomit. And once again, the mention of friends, had a image of a cheerful Orihime, blow up in her head and only then did she remember that not only was Ichigo not her boyfriend, she was also not acting like Orihime's friend. Rukia glanced down at her Harajuku Lovers watch and cursed when she found it to be half past 1.

" I need to go now, please take me home," she asked quickly, picking up her jacket and in the motion of putting it on when Ichigo grabbed it and threw it back onto the chair.

"What's wrong? Why are you trying to go so quickly?" He asked her, but she only shook her head and went to pull on her jacket once more.

"Nothing. I just want to go _**now**_," She said through gritted teeth.

"Why? What did I say wrong?" He asked with concern and for a moment she was tempted to tell him, but the thought of what the answer may bring scared the knickers off of her.

"Your mad." He stated, grabbing onto the sleeve of her jacket and she retaliated by pulling harder.

"No I'm not, I just want to go home!" She screeched.

"Yes you are. Just tell me what's wrong!" he yelled right back at her, furious that she was closing herself off from him.

She turned back to him, wanting to show him a piece of her mind, when the flash of light appeared, flashing a strange brown light until she could see something again. Ichigo's face turning to her, furious, raging red and screaming to her words of obscenities. Throwing the delicate table in front of her and grabbing her by the wrist. He looked insane, but still the same Ichigo she knew. His clothes were different though, more formal and straight and through the yells she could only catch a few words in fear, staring up at the man she thought she knew. But she heard the words, repeating what she heard him say before, so clear and strong she couldn't hide the fact that he said once already.

"_Tell me what's wrong? Why are you doing this? What did I do? You can't go back to him! He doesn't deserve you!"_

And then like getting sucked into a time travel continuum, she fell back and stared up into the eyes of the same boy.

"What's wrong Rukia?" he asked her, staring at her intensely.

Scared and freaked out by the events, she took a frightened step back and drew her arms towards her chest in a protective and defensive stance.

"D –don't…" She stammered nervously. Fear already biting into her skin. She glanced behind her quickly and searching for a way out of there, anyway to get out and make this fear that was crushing at her heart to go away.

Ichigo grabbed her shoulder and turned her around. "Rukia listen to me, that was all just a dream. There's nothing to worry about", he told her intensely, but she only shook out of his hold and stared in shock at him.

"H –how do, do you know?" She asked shocked. "I never told you about my dreams. How do you know what I just saw! What are you doing to me! STOP IT! Stop it now!" She screamed, cowering away from him despite his attempts to stay strong.

"Rukia, please listen to me." Ichigo tried again, but Rukia could not listen to him. That feeling of dread was spreading all over her by now –it was like a disease slowly devouring her sense of security. She shivered. Her conscience was on high alert and the fact that it was scared her to death. Her gut feeling was telling her to not trust him, but her heart was telling her this was Ichigo…Ichigo that boy that she adored, the boy that had done nothing to hurt her or put her in danger if the time arouse. Ichigo would never physically hurt her, emotionally –that was another story.

"Rukia".

"NOOO Stop IT!" Rukia cried out, shaking her head from side to side.

"LOOK AT ME!" He yelled at her. And she did.

Rukia stared into Ichigo's eye. His amber eyes slowly making her fall asleep. Then almost as if she was dropping dead, her body fell into the arms of her golden-eyed boy.

He burned her with his stare and she stared back at him solemnly regretfully, he caressed her cheek lovingly and her eyelids began to droop, and she was falling once more into abysses.

"Sleep Rukia, I'll tell you everything when you wake up."

"_I love you."_

Rukia fell into that familiar dark dream world.


	11. Beloved

**Chapter 11: ****Beloved**

When Rukia awoken from her slumber, so did the treacherous feeling of dread begin to sink in. Sitting straight up, she shot out of bed and worriedly touched herself for any sign of discomfort and pain. When she was satisfied that she was physically A-ok, she sank to the floor in despair.

She was not home, that was clear from the moment she woke up to find herself in a canopy white mattress and a dark lit room except for the light of a dieing fireplace. There were no windows except for a door outlined by a yellow light. No escape. And she was definitely sure that _**HE**_ was behind that very door.

Sighing, she wondered how she managed to find herself in this position, and debating with herself about the possibilities of escaping. How to escape, she didn't know, but if she stayed, maybe she could get some answers _or_ she could run like the coward she was. She didn't' want to go. Escape was definitely not an option she could take because escaping meant going through that door. A door she would rather not go through.

What would he be able to say to her that would ease her fear of him she did not know? But the dream she had with him was enough.

-

_It was unusually bright in her dream, an almost blinding white actually, in the form of silky curtains. Her hands brushed against it and it softly moved from her touch. The sunlight from behind the curtains made her squint but the early morning warmth assured her of its day. From behind the flowing curtains she could see nothing but lovely hills of green vegetation and widely spread forestry that she could only with she could grow. The landscape was a beautiful garden fit for dukes and earls of the early 1800's. When two arms encircled her waist from behind and pulled her into a strong bare chest, she did not tense but leant back into his embrace. "You must go back to her, and I to him," her voice broken down into choked words of grief and guilt. But he did not listen to her. The grip on her wrist tightened and pulled her to him, closer into the darkness of the room. "Stay with me forever, I do not need her and he to you," he told her determinedly, his breath a soft tantalizing caress to her neck, while his nose and lips trailed across its length. "But I must", she told him weakly, falling under his spell once more. "No," he growled and then like watching from another view, she watched terrified as he sunk his teeth deep into her neck and dragged her back into the room full of darkness._

-

"A vampire," she whispered. Was Ichigo a vampire? Were vampires real at all in a sense that made it at all true? She couldn't even think of such a possibility. Sure she had once in her life been really interested in vampires and actually imagined them to be superior and immortal, but she did only get her information from her extensive Dvd season sets of "Buffy the Vampire slayer". But vampires weren't real. They were just another form of ghost story to scare naughty little kids at night. Not to turn adolescent girls into a lustful mess. A noise from outside the door interrupted her musing and she crawled quietly to the door. She lent against the door in hopes of hearing some or little information.

"How is she taking the news?" Rukia swore she heard that voice before. It just seemed eerily familiar. His voice was very straightforward and had a chill to the tone as if practiced.

"I didn't tell her anything yet. Fuck, it's going to happen again isn't it?" was another male's reply. He sounded desperate. _Ichigo she thought._

_What was he talking about? What did he mean was going to happen again? Rukia thought._

"I don't know. All I know is that if you don't fix this shit whole of a situation you dug yourself in, history will repeat itself once more. And – the man said with a tone of foreshadowing started, but quickly stopped himself as if unsure to voice it out.

"And what Ishida –tell me now I don't think I can handle anymore surprises" Ichigo exasperated, the shuffling of his feet told Rukia he was pacing and she wondered why he was so stressed out.

"It's Orihime." She gasped and covered her mouth hastily. ""She suspects that you're pulling away from her and she mentioned something else. Silence. She says that you haven't visited her in two weeks. She's worried that you haven't –Ishida stopped for a moment and Rukia had to lean into the door to hear his shushed words that made her blood run cold.

_Fed._

Rukia jerked back, too afraid to speak or breath. Her hand clutched at the wool carpet beneath her and breathed in and out. No, it couldn't be possibly true. But she heard it from her very own ears that it was all true. All her suspicions were finally coming true and now all that remained was her nightmare in the flesh. Ichigo was breathing, living vampire already sucking the life out of Orihime, and what was worse was that she had a sneaky suspicion that Ishida was one too. How many of her friends were vampire and how did Orihime know about this? What was wrong with the world! She panicked. She had to find a way out before –before …before they got to her too! But the thought of never having Ichigo and his overbearing attitude and goofy smile made a strange ache begin from he throat all the way down to her chest, but that was silly he was the enemy and she was surely not infected with the Stockholm Syndrome. Ichigo was not the same boy and she had to start stop thinking of him as this desperate man behind the door but as this vicious bloodsucking fiend who would eventually discard her like a piece of rotten trash and she would stay long enough for that to happen Rukia thought darkly.

Grudgidly she leaned back into the door and listened once more to their hushed discussion.

"WHAT would you like me to tell her? She won't listen to me any longer and demands that you come to her right now!"

Ichigo sighed. "I can't, not right now. I can't leave her alone when I'm gone." There was a pause. "Were you able to gather any information about the rogue?" Ichigo asked.

"Only that they haven't seen or heard of him in a century. They say he hibernates right now feeding off the vengeance he harbors. There was also something strange the informer told me about this rogue. They tell me that the last time anyone had ever seen him since the last war was in Winchester. Is that not Rukia's hometown?" Ishida asked.

Rukia's eyes flew open in surprise. _Winchester? What could a criminal be doing in her hometown?_

"Yes, but I won't discuss that with you" was Ichigo's cold response. The mere sound of it made Rukia cringe back. She'd never heard Ichigo's voice sound so artic and cool.

Ichigo sighed in defeat. "Will she be safe here…while I'm gone?"

"I will protect her with my life. How much longer will she sleep?"

"For a couple more hours", he said and Rukia shot away from the door when the voices seem to get closer and closer to the door. Rukia scrambled off the floor and threw herself onto the bed and closed her eyes just as the door opened and a ray of light crept up to her bed. She could feel him getting closer and told herself to relax over and over again in her head. Rukia breathed deeply, her heart beating into a maddening rate. She prayed to God that he would believe her false slumber and leave quickly but he didn't. He stood near the bed and gazed down at her and even without looking she _knew_ he was staring at her. Rukia was glad her eyes were not open because she knew just knew that the moment she opened them up, those expressive amber eyes would just have one look and pull her back into this obsessive love. She was afraid of it, scared to get burned by their passion, but most of all afraid of her own obsessive need for him that she'd never felt for anyone else.

His body warmth radiated off him and Rukia found her body reacting and moving towards him as if only their bodies knew where they belonged even thought their minds raged in a battle for reality. But when he lent over her body, she was surprised to find his lips touch hers in a kiss that made her feel floaty and dizzy –the beginning of yet another deep slumber fogging her head as images before her began to get hazy. Tired and forgetful, she fluttered her eyes open weakly and watched his dark figure walk through the door he came from, but just as he had his hand on the doorknob he turned around for a second as if he knew she was awake and smiled at her with that silly grin she liked so much, and closed the door with a soft click!

Rukia laid in bed, numb almost, as she listened to the missing footsteps and the almost deafening sound of the room. For awhile, Rukia just laid there, paralyzed to the bed and listening to the sound of absolute silence, fighting her body to stay awake when the beck and call to sleep seemed like heaven but she had to fight it! No matter how freaking unbelievably nice sleep sounded, it was nothing compared to the sweetness Rukia found she was able to escape much easier without Ichigo no longer here.

But Rukia pondered, how do you exactly run away from a vampire? You couldn't exactly hide under your bed and wish it away. To be perfectly honest, she was having troubles trying to think at all and then something happened that scared the bloody hell out of her. If she weren't already going mad as she was, she wouldn't have noticed the way she was freakily beginning to float in the air!

The energy around her was an alluring one and reassuring but the fact that she was three feet off the ground was not something she felt _assured_ about. But just as she was beginning to think all of this was a dream, a window –out of nowhere formed in the room and opened to a dark figure in black and bright baby blue eyes stare at her in what could only look as a devious.

"Knight!" she croaked, but he only grinned and pressed a finger to her lips to shut her up. She sent suspicious looks at him, but he only smiled as if he was the happiest man on earth. "Don't worry, I got you", he said as the air around her suddenly disappeared and she fell limply into his arms. Her only response was a scowl. Walking to the window, Rukia stared at him skeptically as the hazy fog began to clear and her legs and arms began to have feeling.

"What are you doing here"? She whispered harshly, squeaking when the hand behind her knee began to make soft little touches that made her turn red.

"Stop that!" She squealed and before she could even stop herself, her hand flew to her mouth and looked out the door frantically afraid that her only escape out would be completely ruined …and it did.

The door to the bedroom door slammed open and a disgruntled Ishida stormed in and stopped. With an icy glare directed at Knight he spoke to him. "Knight, what do you think your doing?" But the way he worded it seemed more like a warning.

"She is not yours to take. She is not your beloved either, I'm sure Ichigo had already informed you that your beloved is not this one but Tatsuki-chan."

Rukia looked up at Knight and Ishida confused. The sudden tenseness in the room seemed to want to clobber her and wondered what the hell they were talking about. Especially about the Beloved part, and how this had anything to do with her.

"Can you _please_ tell me what's HAPPENING around here!?"

As if just realizing there was another human being in the room, they both stared at her in a mix of surprise and amusement.

"Um…or not", she said after being under the gaze of both hot-blooded males.

The hand that held onto her tightened and she looked up incredulous to see his eyes turn a smoky blue. The intense emotion through them too much to handle.

"I don't appreciate being lied to Ishida. Especially from someone that the elders assured me that I could trust. I will take what's mine", he growled out and before Rukia could even scream, Ishida was already becoming a small figure in the dark night and was gone in an instant.

-

"GET AWAY FROM ME YOU BLOOD SUCKER!" Rukia practically screeched at the male who was currently trying to get her off the couch as she threw all of the couch pillows at him.

"You so loud and crude –I wonder what he finds so special", Knight said pensively.

Rukia's reply was to throw a remote control at him on which he caught and gently put back onto the coffee table. "Shut up," She ordered, but was cut off half sentence into a dignified squeal as he hauled her off the couch and over his shoulder to drop her rather harshly onto the kitchen counter.

"Just try and stay calm, blimey, you act like I'm going to do some unforgivable deed to you. Did I not just save you?" He questioned her and unwillingly she nodded in defeat.

"Then stay still, I need to check for something", he said thoughtfully but when he tried to take off her sweater, she swapped his hand away and blushed violently. "I thought you said you weren't going to do that! What was all that talk about not doing anything unforgivable to me!"

He looked at her strangely before smiling. I won't I promise", he said sincerely, but Rukia was still unsure.

"How do I know that when I take my sweater off, you won't try to suck my blood? How can I trust you when I don't even know you?" She questioned him with suspicious eyes.

He sighed tiredly. "What do you want me to do, swear on my life?" He teased, but Rukia only frowned.

"Your already dead, how can you swear on your life when you're already dead. You're just trying to trick me!" She asked snappy.

He frowned. "I'm not dead. I'm alive just like you are", he told her, but she shook her head as if he was the one that was mad.

"Why don't you think I'm alive? I need food to survive and then he looked down to his parts and Rukia followed his gaze and looked away with a blush, and I can assure you that I can also reproduce. Are these not the characteristics of living?" He questioned again.

"I guess", she said, but looked at him skeptically. "Fine promise on your life that you won't do anything perverted".

"I promise", he said into her eyes and smiled teasingly. "Scouts honor!" He saluted and she whacked him on the head.

"Surrender", he mock plea and she only glared at him and took off her sweater, feeling the cool air in the room through her thin black tank top.

Rubbing her arms she asked him curiously, "What are you looking for exactly?"

He said nothing, but rubbed at her skin and sniffed it to her embarrassment and even tried to lift up her tank top, which she slapped away.

"Just a mark", he said.

"A mark!" She said flabbergasted, "Like a birthmark?"

He chuckled this time. "Yes love, a birthmark and some teeth marks."

When Rukia shivered, he rubbed her arm.

"Don't worry, there's no visible marks anywhere, but I still haven't found the –. Knight said but stopped immediately. Stepping closer, Rukia backed away but could not go any farther when a hand touched the curve of her shoulder and neck and lent in closer till Rukia could not see his face at all. Then with a gasp, she almost jumped off the counter as a wave of shock passed through her like a rush of sensual energy.

"W-what did you _do_ to ME!" She asked agitated now. Her words were cracked in the odd sensation as if it had thrown up a protective barrier over her soul. The feeling was welcoming but it did not make her feel any better. It scared her how her body felt as if she had allowed the touch of Knight. Welcoming and embracing it to the point of lovers. She trusted him; she somehow knew this and yet she did not know where this unknown trust appeared from. The dark tousled head lent back and she wondered at the smugness she found in his eyes.

"Nothing but a protection spell for my beloved", he said with an air of confidence and obvious manly pride.

When he leaned in to touch her, she scrambled further onto the counter perplexed as ever. He seemed to not understand and then he frowned for a minute before smirking knowingly.

He hasn't told you anything, has he?"

"Told me what?" She asked suspiciously, but he did not answer her question but sit down and jingle his legs like her father use to do.

"I see. So Ichigo has told you absolutely nothing about his world, and from checking you," he stopped to do a once over in which she covered her chest he continued. "I can see that he has not even begun his preparations at all."

Now completely annoyed at the fact that whatever he was talking about, actually what everyone around her was talking about was thoroughly confusing and annoying the hell out of her. It was as if they were all in on a joke she had no idea about. She was feeling out of the loop and she desperately needed to get in or bloody hell she would start to throw tantrums around here but what was worse were all these ridiculous accusations that she –Rukia Kuchiki was their "Beloved" as she had heard from already three different males. Whatever this Beloved thing was, she did not want any part of it anymore despite the almost cheerful sound it made when it came out of Ichigo's mouth. _Arg! She had to stop doing this,_ she thought. Getting that bloodsucker vampire get into her skin and especially into her thoughts. It just had to stop!

"I don't understand what you're saying at all. Why does everyone keep calling me their Beloved!" She stopped to think and then added in "What is a Beloved?"

Knight mumbled under his breathe and with a flick of his wrist, a black piece of paper and pen from across the room began to float in their direction and into his hand.

Rukia watched fascinated but terrified at this new power she thought only existed in anime. Just the whole magic-power-vampire thing was not something she wanted to get comfortable with or use to.

"Here, I'll draw it out for you. The only way I could explain this at all is through my sketches", Knight told her. He gestured with his hand for her to come over. She did.

When he was sure that he had her attention, he began to draw in long graceful and bold strokes. In an odd occurrence, Rukia stood dumbfounded and mesmerized as he drew his artistic web. She watched him do this for a few minutes, admiring the small little sketches he drew tot eh words and couldn't help but envy his artistic skills. Compared to her bunny drawings, his made hers look –well to put it nicely, looked like drawings made by blind primary school students.

"And –there done", Knight said while pulling at arms length to admire his good work.

When he placed the picture on the kitchen counter he bid her over from the chair and explained to her the only way he could, through pictures.

Knight smiled at her, and Rukia's insides melted from its charm.

"I guess we should start from the beginning," he continued and Rukia nodded in agreement.

"Once upon a ti- Knight started but stopped and glared when Rukia began to laugh.

"Are you honestly going to start like that?" She asked.

He ignored her again. "Ok, one more time. Once upon a time in the first few days God created earth, God and his human you call Adam created a creature stuck between human and beast. God's plan was to create man first, beast and then woman, but after reasons unknown he did not, but instead created a new kind of beast. A beast whose features appeared human –but crazed and animalistic like his fellow beast. Stronger, faster and wittier than either man or beast."

For a minute, Rukia let the information flow through her head and tried not to laugh at its ridiculous taste for false facts. Of course she knew the story of God and his creations and of Adam and Eve, but this was starting to sounds like a cranked up version of the story of Adam and Eve.

"God, he continued did not know this at all and left both man and the halfling in the garden along with all the other animals and beast of labor to live in harmony together in his paradise. And they did –but not for long because God had created one more before he decided to rest and her name was Eve."

"I'm confused now –I thought you said this was a story that would help me understand what's been happening to me. I mean your stories really angsty and interesting and all but I don't see how this fits in with anything", she said. Knight grinned, probably enjoying her confusion but did comment.

"Just listen to me and you'll find out."

"Eve was the first woman, created through Adams rib and she was beautiful. The Halfling full of carnal lust, desired Eve and wanted Eve for his own and to mate with her the way the beast inside him urged him to do, but his human heart right then and there fell in love with her. The Halfling watched her from afar and when the day came, he captured her with sweet words and made her his by placing a mark on her neck and fed her his blood so that their hearts beat as one even through blood. After the blood exchange, Eve gained knowledge and the evils of the world. But the Halfling was smart and bid her to rub a plant mixture on her neck and sent her to eat the apple of knowledge from the three trees in Eden. God sensed the new evil in his garden and caught Eve eating from the forbidden apple along with Adam who had followed pursuit of Eve. The Halfling scared for the punishment set for Eve, threw himself in from of Eve but God knew the wickedness that had happened between the two. God had smelled the blood that Eve and the Halfling had drank and cursed Adam and Eve out of the garden and into the wasteland. But God was not finished. He had saved the worst for the Halfling. God cursed the Halfing to live forever, their souls dammed forever always hungry for a thirst that they could not sate –forever living in the shadows for God had taken their light the way they had taken his daughter. But God was also merciful. He cursed the Halfing forever to darkness, hunger and unbroken until they had found a human. A fated human that could free their dammed soul and feed their thirst. This human would be their only one the Halfing could drink from or a promised death. But even through death God wanted to curse the Halfing that ruined the Human race. He cursed the Halfing to be reincarnated lifetime after lifetime searching for his fated human, and when he did, that human would be their Beloved. Beloved is our savior and our lover, friend and soul mate forever."

Rukia was silent. The weight of the story had her frozen solid. She could not believe it. The stories about vampires were right. They were REAL. This was too unbelievable. Mythical creatures weren't real and if they did, they couldn't possibly be living in her world.

When Knight touched her forehead patiently, she did not pull away, but her soul lit up as if realizing its touch from deep inside.

"Are you alright? I guess I should have lessened the dramatic effect." He said thoughtfully and pulled her off the counter and into his arms. She sagged in his arms. "I can't believe this!" She heard herself say. _**Why was this happening to her!**_

-

**_There have been a rather large amount of complaints due to my rather bad use of grammar. Again I would love for a Beta reader but for now you must stick with my crappy grammar._**


	12. His and Her Proclamation

_Beware of the smuttiness and grammar, I try my best. _

**Chapter Twelve: ****His and Her Proclamation**

"Here sit here, I'll go get you some porridge. Not very fond of porridge myself but me mum like it when I gave it to her so it should do the trick." Knight said, his voice trailing off from inside the kitchen and fumbling around with the Tupperware.

But Rukia could not be awake or aware of anything. Not even Knight's best attempt to be a perfect gentleman. With a sigh, she landed sideways onto the couch and screamed into the cushion.

"I –hump –my –life!" Rukia growled.

"I bed your pardon". Knight asked, peeking through his bangs to ask her.

Red, snotty, and teary-eyed Rukia looked up at him and glared.

"I said I hate my life." She bemoaned.

"Now why would you say that? After finding my beloved I feel pretty darn good -bloody fantastic actually." Knight chuckled musically.

Rukia snorted. "For you it is. This is terrible! I can't possibly be your beloved. I don't want anything to with your dark world of Goth and gore. I just want to have a normal summer vacation!" Then it dawned on her. Summer vacation! She was supposed to go to Winchester! Not be here with these –_VAMPIRES!_

"Oh no!" She moaned. "Byakuya's going to kill me!"

The grin on Knight's face disappeared into a frown. "Who is Byakuya, and why would he attempt to kill my beloved?"

Rukia frowned. "Will you quit with the beloved nonsense? Do you know how frustrating it is to have everyone talk about you and bombarding you with all this information? I'm literally brain dead at the moment and I need time to breathe!"

She told him passionately, annoyed that he just ignored her desperate pleas of denial. _Did he not just hear her tell him that she absolutely was not his beloved?_

"I do". Knight told her sincerely.

"I know exactly how it feels Rukia. My soul has just awoken and I'm still new with all of this." He told her solemnly as if to block out a bad scene replaying in his mind. The seriousness of the situation was making her a bit nervous.

"You're a liar! You've probably been alive or dead –whatever for hundreds of years!" She said disbelievingly.

"I assure you that I am not lying. Due to some he paused for a moment –complications, my soul was not allowed to be reborn until now."

Rukia stumbled back. "What do you mean complications?" She asked suspiciously.

He sighed. "It means that in a past life, a century ago my past self was killed by another dark one."

This seemed to puzzle Rukia. "You died? I thought vampires couldn't die…your supposed to be all immortal and all."

Knight's eyebrow lifted up quizzically. "From whom did you receive this assumption?"

Rukia flushed in embarrassment. She didn't want to tell him about her obsession with Spike in Buffy the Vampire slayer, but she really doubted he would know of a silly American show.

"Buffy." She said quite timidly.

"As in Buffy the vampire slayer? That bugger of an American show –I can't believe you watch that rubbish." He said with a scowl.

She blushed in her utter chagrin that went down to her neck. Okay, maybe she shouldn't have told him anything at all.

She shot up in defense. "What's wrong with Buffy?"

"Everything about it. It's absolutely unpractical," he told her smartly. "I bet you only watched it because of that frat boy Spike."

Rukia turned away in shame. So what! What if she only watched it for Spike, but come on! The whole badass vampire thing couldn't be ignored!

"Bloody Americans and their ridiculous movies". Knight scowled again.

Rukia rolled her eyes. "Ok, whatever, but I have to go or my brother's going to kill me and then bring me back to life to torture me in the cruelest way." Rukia shivered at the thought.

When Rukia turned to Knight again she squealed in surprise and tried to shy away when his closed the distance between them.

When she looked up into his eyes, she saw earnest and genuine care in his and the thought of that got her worried and uncomfortable.

"I would never let anyone touch you or hurt you." He told her huskily, the tone of his voice had gone deeper and a bit too desperate.

"I would never let anyone take you away from me again –not even the disgraceful Ichigo." He growled possessively. Rukia didn't know where this had come from but she hoped it ended soon.

His tooth peeked out of his mouth in an animalistic manner and she shivered at the idea of those fangs digging deep into her neck –but luckily for her, his attention wasn't on her. Instead it was focused on the door. He growled menacingly and pushed her behind him.

Rukia stared fixated and curious as to what had gotten Knight so riled up until a loud bang was heard and the door was knocked out of it hinges and in the mist of it stood …Ichigo in all his glory.

Rukia lifted her head from underneath her ducked arms and stared frozen to the spot. Her heart thumped wildly against her chest again and she had to growl annoyed at herself more than ever. The sound echoed into the room and caught wrathful, powerful amber eyes that landed on her, hooded and dark.

The look was desperate and possessive. He looked at her as if in pure, aggressive hunger. Raw possession and dark with the intent of getting back what he wanted. What _he_ came for. The look frightened her and yet started a warmth that engulfed her body just by his close proximity. That look was too strong –too close to her soul for comfort and the thought of forever looked like sin dipped in chocolate.

She took a step back unconsciously and was not surprised to hear Ichigo hiss his displeasure. The corners of his lips lifted to reveal his fangs and the image of his fangs plunging into her neck and pulling her into the dark, the memory still strong enough to freeze her steps.

"Ichigo. You shame yourself now by coming into _**my**_ territory, touching _**my**_ beloved and fooling me to the whereabouts of _**my**_beloved. The elders will be _displeased_ with you." Knight's voice broke through the stiff atmosphere in blatant warning.

But it might as well have been said to a deaf man for Ichigo did not heed his warning. He didn't even spare Knight a single glance. All he had eyes for, were of her. The glint of gold sparkled in his eyes as he inspected her and made a move to step towards her and touch her when Knight's warning growl increased in volume.

"You will be wise to not take another step. Rukia is mine, my beloved –she will never be yours." Knight barked smugly.

Rukia glared at him –at both of them actually and took a step back, but the grip on her wrist tightened and pulled her against his chest. Rukia struggled and pushed against the chest that held her, but it was of no use. All it did was force her fingers onto his chest in a way that made Ichigo's lips curl up ferociously.

He stepped closer to the pair. "Let her go."

Knight chuckled. The rumble of his chest made her furious and she hissed her displeasure. Knight looked down at her surprised at her sudden displeasure and smirked at Ichigo who was slowly losing control. _He was a possessive man._

"Rukia is not going anywhere. She belongs here in my arms. With me and only me. She has promised herself to me in a loving vow, a step to joining together"

Ichigo's eyebrows quirked.

"I never heard her utter such a thing. Maybe we should let her choose who she would like to be with, then we shall know her true intentions." Ichigo told him smoothly, confident in his trust with Rukia.

Knight only grinned, then he did something that made them both gap in surprise. With deliberate sensual nips of his mouth, he let his lips caress the column of her neck –kissing then licking it with fierce intention.

Rukia stood frozen. The cold lips on her neck stopped her heart and stole her breath away.

"I don't think I will. Rukia is mine already. Destined by fate. I alone will only be able to take her beating heart and share with her my soul."

Rukia still frozen in her spot let out a strangled cry, but fell on deaf ears.

Neither man moved. They both glared on opposite sides, fist clenched, jaws tense.

Ichigo crouched. "Never", he growled through his teeth and lunged at Knight. Knight pushed her to the floor in haste and she rolled over and watched in horror as two **hot blooded** _possessive_ vampires fought. Both equally strong and lethally dangerous. Kicks, pushes and shoves that she was sure would have killed any human –but that was it, they weren't exactly human.

A sharp ring brought her attention back to the men and her blood ran cold as she realized what they had both brought out. _Swords? Are you kidding me? She thought, what was this Feudal Japan?_

Just like that, the swords clashed against each other in a screeching _shring_ before Knight kicked Ichigo in the stomach and sent him flying backwards into a wall. Taking no time to recover, Ichigo stood up and began running towards Knight, the silver glint of the light shining on his sword like a lightning hitting its mark. It was like him. Bright, dangerous and beautiful.

Knight taking advantage of the opposition of power sliced his sword across Ichigo's stomach and Rukia screamed, crying in hysteria as the blood started gushing out. Ichigo winced and clutched his stomach, but shielded himself just as Knight's sword came crashing down on him. Their faces just inches apart, they glared at each other and then pushed off in different directions. Both men heaved, breathing rapidly with small pants. Ichigo, who had taken the blow against his stomach, was now slack in his stance and she feared he would die. That he would lose this battle and leave her forever. There was no point in winning. She didn't want anyone to win or die just because of her. All this fighting was just too overbearingly archaic and she was a modern kind girl –not a bloody damsel in distress.

This was a battle to the deaths. It was so honest and animalistic. Knight would come out the victor, she knew from the result of the battle so far, and she feared for Ichigo. Feared that if this went on any longer Ichigo would cease to exist. She could feel it in her stomach and the heavy beat of her heart. She had to stop it –it had to end now, but the battle had begun once more.

It was Knight this time that made the first move and he made a yell, his sword raised over his head ready to strike Ichigo as he raised his sword up in defense.

It was going to end. She could see it –feel it in her soul. She watched as if in slow motion as both men yelled, bringing their swords up in a clash that turned into a burning white light. Then before Rukia or Knight could realize it, Ichigo had pulled a sword strapped behind his back and swung it towards Knight's stomach. Knight shoved it aside and was imbedded deep into his shoulder blade.

Ichigo pulled back and sheathed it with the gracefulness of a killer. He clutched his leaking stomach and grimaced as he watched Knight grunt and fall against the couch behind him, curling into a fetal position.

Knight glared, the grim look on his face pissed off as hell. He winced slightly as he tried to move but the tip of Ichigo's sword prevented him from any further movement.

The suspense was killing her and she needed to intervene. Rukia stood up slowly from her position on the floor and walked slowly to Ichigo –afraid any movement could suddenly give the right momentum to take Knight's life.

"_Ichigo_", she whispered huskily.

She stood there beside him and watched as his eyes flashed a burning gold and frowned slightly.

"Ichigo", she repeated louder and then as if she wanted to touch him, she reached out her shaking hands to the hands that still dripped blood onto the cherry wood floor.

She stared at him pleading him to have mercy on Knight. She didn't think she could take any more drama. Although she didn't very much like Knight, he still wasn't someone she wanted on her death list –although he was annoying when he kept calling her "Beloved".

For a moment, she was afraid her pleading would not stop Ichigo from slicing Knight's head and it looked as if he would, but ever so slowly he began to retreat and sheathe it once more. Letting out a breath she didn't realize she was holding, she looked at Knight and was worried as the puddle of blood began to get larger around him.

She stepped forward, intending to help him up but a hand around her wrist stopped her. She glared at the offending member and meant to shrug it off, but she found her hands on their own accord intertwine… as if to keep him close.

"Let's go." He pulled her and she frowned obediently and glanced back to Knight who watched her intently with hooded eyes. Then in an act that surprised her, he raised his hand to his heart and stared at her through penetrating eyes.

'_My heart is yours'_. Knight whispered in her mind. She stared shocked at the odd feeling of having someone brush up against your mind and talk to you without really talking.

Knight spoke again. "This is not the end Kurosaki Ichigo. Rukia will be my Beloved and not even you can fight what your destiny has placed upon you."

Ichigo stood there, his back to Knight and Rukia could tell that he was trying to control himself when the muscles on his back tensed up and then relaxed completely. When he spoke, it was as if years of denial had not taken away his hope and determination to strive forward.

"I will go through heaven and hell and become a dark one –all over again because destiny has _no_ hold onto my heart", and then he looked at her, that raw emotion hitting her suddenly and scaring her as he looked right into her soul.

"My heart will never change. My love for Rukia is enough _–it is all I need_". And then with that all said, he opened the door and slammed it shut pulling a disgruntled Rukia along.

-

The atmosphere in the taxi while they waited to get home was tense. She sat straight and rigid in her seat and tried to stop the pounding that had begun in her chest.

Ichigo had not offered a word of comfort since they had gotten in the taxi, but every so often she could see him wince as the taxi hit a speed bump or shake. She glanced worriedly at his wound.

"Ichigo." She called softly, but Ichigo feigned her as if he had not heard her. He continued to stare blankly outside the window, glaring at an unknown enemy that taunted him in his thoughts.

When he did not answer again to her call, insecurity began to crawl into her heart and her imagination went wild. In her moment of desperation, she blurted out what her heart had been begging her to say. Yearning her to admit to herself and finally let go.

"_I love you Ichigo_". Came her rushed cry.

If calling him hadn't gotten his attention, this certainly did. The frown on his lips quickly disappeared to form a perfect 'O'.

She cursed herself for her stupid naïve mind and the idiotic little tears that were already falling down her pale cheek. As if sensing them, Ichigo drew her near and embraced her as tight as he could without interfering the healing on his stomach but Rukia could not care less. All she wanted to do was hold him tight forever and never feel like she was foolishly in love with Ichigo like she was now.

Ichigo's hand played with her hair, patting it and cooing her to peaceful breathing. His warmth reassured her of his presence and she breathed along with his feeling their bodies become one. _Heart to heart_.

"It's okay Rukia." He whispered to her in her ear. The light caress against it caused shivers down her body. She calmed almost instantly and leaned in closer for more delicious attention.

"You don't have to tell me you love me. Don't feel obliged to tell me it just because I did." He said to her almost painfully. The tone in his voice made her heart ache but he wouldn't allow her to speak again.

He leaned down and sweetly kissed her forehead. Rukia leaned into his touch and twined her arms around his neck, admiring the way it was firm yet soft under her touch. She lay there intertwined with his body in the bumpily taxi car, too tired and unwilling to break the moment by telling him how _wrong _he was.

-

With his arm slung over hers and her arm around his waist, Rukia helped Ichigo into his flat while balancing the keys onto the nearest table and then to wobble Ichigo into his bedroom. When they finally reached the bed, they both fell onto the bed-exhausted form the exertion. When she attempted to get out of bed, Ichigo had pulled himself into her lap, snuggling into like a kitty that denied her any escape.

"Ichigo. I have to clean your stomach or it's going to get infected", she scolded him. The arm wrapped around her thigh left and he reluctantly let her go. She walked determinedly into his bathroom and easily found his first aid kit on the counter.

When she returned to the bedroom, she had to stop herself from gasping and dropping the first aid kit when she unconsciously let it slip from her fingers.

Ichigo had taken off his sweater and lay there half naked on his bed, a peaceful look gracing his usually stoic expression. The muscles on his chest and abs moved as he breathed up and down and Rukia could only swallow at the sheer power and masculinity Ichigo possessed. Beads of perspiration glistened on his body and the thought of touching him seemed too good to be true.

Rukia swallowed again and tried not to let his godlike body get the better of her –although it sure was making her want to lick her lips.

She sat on the edge of the bed and opened the box and pulled out a cotton ball and some disinfectant. Dabbing some of the disinfectant alcohol onto the cotton ball, she turned to Ichigo and blushed when she realized he was watching her. Their eyes met and she was sure he could hear her raging heart. _She turned away, ashamed at herself for thinking of Ichigo that way when there were more important things to be done._

"This is going to sting a bit". She warned him and brushed it lightly against his stomach. Ichigo groaned and Rukia whispered an apology before continuing and then wrapped the wound with maze and tied it tightly.

She returned the first aid kit inside the bathroom and slowly made her way back to him –not in a particular rush to get away from him. When she reached his bed, he looked up at her with those smoldering amber eyes. _He was weak and yet strong._

"I – She started.

"Stay with me." He demanded.

Rukia smiled and climbed into his bed. He wrapped his bare arms around her and pulled her close to him, letting her rest her sleepy head onto his chest. _He was her strength, her new home. _Her fingers trailed lines on his biceps, watching in fascination as it jumped up.

He kissed her right there. Once on the cheek, the other no the nose and the last onto her waiting lips.

Just as she was about to rest her sleepyhead, she remembered something important. She reached up and caressed his cheek and waited for him to open his eyes.

"Promise me Ichigo. Promise me you'll tell me everything about you and your world. I don't want to be in the shadows any longer", she pleaded him desperately and he frowned and then nodded.

"Tomorrow". He promised and they both fell asleep in each other's arms just as the sun began to rise.


	13. To the train station

Look for me by moonlight

Sorry I took so long, I blame it on my ex who took all of my time but now that we're through I can focus on writing this bit. As usual my grammar will be very off since I haven't really been writing a lot so bear with me. To those who continue to read this fanfic, you're all saints. Hopefully this will be worth the wait. And thanks, just because.

**Chapter 13: To the train station**

_It was another dream this time. Peaceful, still and tranquil, unlike the many other dreams. She was laying out in the sunshine, playing idly with a crown of daisies and humming to an unknown song. For a moment she wondered what she was smiling about until she saw herself prop up and smile coyly at the figure under the tree, surrounded in shadows._

"_I made you a crown! Will you wear it for me?" She heard herself ask lightly._

_This time, she knew who she was talking to, but when the figure leaned towards her she was still surprised to see the faint color of orange and his infamous scowl._

"_If it pleases you." The voice responded, sounding amused but it only further angered Rukia._

"_You always say that." She whined. "Don't you want this beautiful crown that I made for you with __**all**__ my heart?"_

"_Of course I do, now give it here."_

_But Rukia had other plans. Her smile grew wider and wider and her eyes glowed with delighted mischief._

"_Kiss me." She said, leaning closer to him until their noses kissed, but he did not move any closer to her._

"_But that would be improper of me. What would happen if I did? Would you still think me gentlemen?" He teased and Rukia frowned, before retreating back to her solitude under the sun._

"_You always say that too. I bet you're only saying that so you wouldn't have to kiss me." She said thoughtfully._

_And then as if another thought popped into her head she turned to him with a glare, "I bet you'd rather kiss Miss Orihime". She said sharply and by the look of surprise on Ichigo's face, she guessed right._

"_I've seen the way you look at her. The sort of hunger only a man can have for a woman. And don't you dare give me that look, Lord Kurosaki, I am not so naïve in the matters of that kind and I-", but she stopped and glanced behind her back when she heard someone calling her name._

"_Miss Rukia". It was Knight and he was heading her way, calling her name. Not giving him one last glance, she picked up her bonnet and ran to Knight all smiles and giggles when he picked her up and swept her around. Ichigo's eyes followed her with an intensity that both frightened her and made her smile._

_The crown of daisies left behind along with someone else._

She woke up smiling and amused, still half weary about the dream and half amused to find that the first thing she woke up to was to Ichigo's nipple.

Curious, she stared fixated at…well is nipple. Considering the fact that this wasn't her first nipple, due to the many exposures of male nipples she had seen from Renji, but she couldn't help but turn red at the embarrassment that she, Rukia was sleeping next to a half naked man. Wanting to ink this of its worth, she snuggled deeper into his warmth but stopped when an amused chuckle vibrated against her body. She shivered and looked up under her midnight tresses up to Ichigo, smiling crookedly at her. His hand on her nape twisting the tiny hairs on her neck that gave her goose bumps.

"Morning." She chirped.

Ichigo smiled. " It's hardly morning, silly girl", he teased and turned over so that she could indeed see that it was morning no longer but the late afternoon.

Rukia groaned. "How long have we been asleep"?

"Long enough", he told her brilliantly, brushing her cheek with his thumb before stretching. Rukia watched transfixed, memorized, hypnotized at his bare back. Tan, ripple, _hard_... oh god don't drool she thought and tore her gaze outside the balcony window.

"How's your wound feeling?" She asked, suddenly remembering his harsh wound and turning to him to prod at it.

"It's fine", he reassured her, but Rukia was not satisfied.

"How are you fine, that cut was deep, there's no way that your fine." She said annoyed at his lack of concern for his own health. "Anyone could have died from that sort of wound."

"But I'm not anyone" He reminded her a bit more harshly.

And she stepped back as if he lashed at her. Ichigo pulled on his sweater and disappeared into the loo. Rukia grumbled under her breath at how moody he was after all she was only looking out for him. Were all dark ones _this_ moody?

When he finally reemerged, she was in the middle of getting her pea coat on and buttoning it until tan fingers finished the job. Staring into those brown eyes she muttered a thank you and he nodded. Ichigo walked into his balcony and motioned for her to follow but she could not.

"I'll take you home".

But she could not, knowing that he was Orihime's. Her blood allowed him life, she choked in her mind. He was standing there right in the sunlight that god refused his kind while he should have been burned.

No, she thought. Orihime deserved to be happy. Ichigo and she are beloveds, they're soul mates and _I'm_…not anything. Her hopes crushed. Forcing a smile she walked up to him and let him carry her. Making sure she didn't hold onto him more than needed. She jumped out of arms the moment he stepped onto her balcony of her room underneath her Jimmy Choo boots.

"Don't forget your promise", she reminded him before walking into her room before she stopped at the sound of her name.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Ichigo asked leaning against her railing his voice sweet like honey.

Rukia turned around, confusion written on her face. "What"?

"A kiss", he said simply.

Rukia shook her head. "Absolutely not. Good bye", she said enthusiastically, closing the balcony door into his face.

After a much needed shower, she left her towel on the floor and began dressing herself, although her thoughts were proving to be very hard to push out. _I can't believe that all happened yesterday_, she thought_. _Depressing little thought bubbles began to pop in her mind and she really tried not to think about it. Instead she used this opportunity to try and organize her thoughts.

Ichigo and Knight were both vampires. Vampires that had beloveds who drank blood and had powers of inhuman strength and flight which _she_ experienced none too excitedly. Scowling at herself in the mirror, she began to comb her wet hair, surprised that her brother has not wondered where she was or remind her of her trip today. Now that she really thought about it, her trip to Winchester seemed less and less welcome. Partly because of her nightmares and the many problems she had right now.

But Ichigo has saved her from Knight, and if she had to be truthful it kind of made her happy, the thought that **he** was jealous enough to think that he could _lose_ her.

Not even wanting to have a discussion about that certain subject, she glanced at her watch and was surprised to find that it was already 5pm. Rising from her vanity she turned to see her brother walk into her room.

"There you are, I didn't see you at lunch. Were you with Orihime again?"

"Yeah." She lied; in all truths, even if she did tell him the truth he would think she'd gone mad.

"Good. I'm glad that you're not having as bad as a time as you had originally thought. Now get dresses, I want you to meet someone, he's going to accompany you to Winchester. I believe he's visiting his sick mother," Byakuya said thoughtfully before leaving the room as silently as he came in.

Rukia turned around absently wondering who her brother had actually accommodated to keep his precious sister safe. Probably an old hag she thought while making sure she had everything she needed for the summer an left her room while the maid took her luggage's and trailed behind her.

When you was out of her flat and outside in the almost warm London weather she was stupefied to see Ichigo talking to_ her_ brother. _Ichigo was talking to her brother as his they were old chaps!_

Wanting to get some straight answers, she jogged up to the pair and sent an accusing look at Ichigo, who in returned grinned mischievously and her brother noticing her arrival deemed it was time for introductions.

She was again surprised to see that her overbearing, protective brother was not being grim and strict when she was around older men. He didn't find any danger when Rukia was in presence with younger men because he knew that Rukia was not interested in adolescent boys, but older men…well lets just say he _knew_ how **dangerous** sexy older men were to younger girls. He had made it impossible to speak to any boy over the age of 18. But_ he_ was talking to Ichigo so comfortably that she wondered how Ichigo got her stuck up brother to loosen up for once.

"Rukia, I want you to meet Kurosaki Ichigo. Kurosaki actually lives in the flat right next to us and is an important businessman to the medical department. I believe he manufactures wheelchairs and such."

Rukia forced a smile and said a polite hello.

"Kurosaki, this is my sister in law Rukia. This is the person that I would like for you to accompany to Winchester."

"**WHAT**!" Rukia asked disbelievingly but immediately shut her mouth when he gave her a warning glance.

"My apologies Kurosa-" Byakuya started but Ichigo cut in.

"No please call me Ichigo".

"My apologies Ichigo, my sister is still very young, you know how it is when you're young." Byakuya said as if thinking of the past. Getting back to the present he spoke to Ichigo again.

"I hope you could protect my sister as if she was your own."

"I promise you that I'll protect her as if I loved her," Ichigo said seriously, but when her brother wasn't looking he winked at her, that made her smile back but when she realized her actions she frowned at herself, _she was suppose to be mad at him not smiling like an idiot_

Kissing Rukia on the cheek, Byakuya gave her a quick nod and reminded her to behave before waving and thanking Ichigo once again to disappear into the company car.

Rukia watched the car leave and turned back to Ichigo who had begun to haul all of her luggages into the taxi. Feeling useless, she clamored into the taxi and waited for Ichigo to join her. After the last piece of luggage was in the trunk both Ichigo and the driver stepped into the car.

"Where to?" The driver asked in a heavy Scottish accent.

"The train station". He ordered and then the car began to slowly move to their destination.

There was silence until Ichigo spoke. "I told you I would."

"Would what?" Rukia asked tilting her head to the side in confusion.

"That I would come see you again." He improvised and she turned her head o stare out the window with a scowl.

"Don't forget your promise to me."

"Of course, but I'll tell you on the train there." He assured her and took her hand.

"No touching." She said and plucked her hand out from his warm ones.

Ichigo scowled. "Why not?"

"I said no." She reprimands him. He pouted and crossed his arms around his chest.

"Are you mad again", he asked his voice turning her into honey, but roughened by his own masculinity.

"Yes." She said trying hard not to sound affected by his voice.

"Because of last night?" He guessed.

"YES!" She said sharply. "I just don't get why you had to go all macho muscle man and pull out your swords. This isn't a fairytale. I'm not a princess and I'm certainly not worth the bloodshed."

" You feel like this a fairytale?" he countered but she didn't respond only blushing madly at her slip of the tongue.

" I was afraid that he got to you." He said quietly.

"And you're wrong, you are worth it" He said seriously pulling her towards him but she squired herself out of his grasp.

"Oh no, just because you say some sweet words to me doesn't mean I'm not still mad at you over your hot headedness. YOU COULD HAVE BEEN KILLLED!" Concern written all over her pale face.

"But I didn't", he clarified.

"But you could have and don't give me that 'I'm a man I can take anything' look because you can't, now sit there and be quiet." She scolded him.

Ichigo grinned, "I love it when you're worried about me". He said cheekily.

Rukia rolled her eyes. "Just shut up."

"Only if you hold my hand." He pouted and Rukia silently wondered how a grown man could pout like that.

Sighing she gave her hand, which he eagerly grabbed and kissed. She smiled unwillingly and let him entwine his strong hands with her small ones. Although this was for his benefit she was glad that he asked.

The rustle and bustle of the train station was busier than she imagined. They had reached the station ay nearly half past seven but the crowd was as large as if it were still the afternoon.

Ichigo grabbed her hand and hauled her along with her to a bench near the ticket master. "Stay here, I'll get the tickets,' he ordered before disappearing into the throngs of people.

Rukia watched families, men and women alone pass by in a rush and squirmed in her seat. After just sitting in the taxi for so long, her arse was starting to feel numb. Sighing, she wondered what was taking Ichigo so long when a strange prickly sensation curled around her spine. She shivered and glanced from side to side to detect what was making her feel so….cold, and then she saw …**him**. Across from the platform, in layers of black and brown, staring at her. Looking at her with those blood thirsty eyes, calculating, hypnotizing her. I was him. The man in her dream. He was here. He was going to get her the way he promised in into her dreams, and she couldn't move, paralyzed at that spot. She couldn't scream, just opened her eyes wide open, staring at him too frightened to move or blink. He smiled. The malice and intent in his eyes too clear. _Soon…._ And then he vanished, as if he wasn't there before.

"Rukia".

Rukia jumped in surprise. Ichigo looked at her strangely. "What's wrong?"

Rukia shook her head. Ichigo stared contemplating whether or not he wanted to believe her or not and instead held out his hand to her.

"Come on, the trains going to leave with out us," he said and Rukia nodded slowly, the pricking feeling along her spine followed her every movement. She shivered. She was petrified and frightened to go to the place she once called home. The nightmares were slowly becoming her reality.

,


End file.
